


Alphas and She Wolves

by JayceCarter



Series: Mason and Nora [1]
Category: Fallout 4
Genre: Angst, Attempted Rape/Non-Con, Canon-Typical Violence, Dirty Talk, Eventual Smut, Everything I touch turns to smut, F/M, Love/Hate, Not Canon Compliant, Rough Sex, Smut, Spoilers, Voyeurism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-15
Updated: 2017-03-26
Packaged: 2018-10-05 11:31:01
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 24
Words: 32,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10306289
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JayceCarter/pseuds/JayceCarter
Summary: Nora isn't cut out for being Overboss, but when she finds herself in that position, she's forced to make due. She has to find a way to keep the raiders in line, keep the gangs from turning on each other, and keep them all from killing her. On top of that mess, she has Mason, Alpha of the Pack, who makes it clear he wants to catch her. Worse? She can't shake the feeling she wants to be caught.Mason has seen a lot of leaders come and go, but none have caught his attention like the little she-wolf who has ousted Colter. Will he convince her to trust him, or will he find out she is too wild for even him to tame?Will they be able to get all of Nuka World under their control, or will the raider paradise eat them both alive?





	1. Chapter 1

Nora walked into the Amphitheater, the smell of animals surrounding her. She remembered when she went to the zoo as a kid, the way she’d drag her parents from exhibit to exhibit in an effort to see it all before they left. This place reminded her of that.

 

She’d decided to visit late at night on purpose, and the lack of people meant she’d picked right. Her trip to the Disciples midday had left her around far more crazy people at once than she was prepared to deal with.  A few wandered around here, eyeing her but saying nothing. She strolled through the space, peering in the cages. Molerats in one, gazelles in another, even Gorillas. She walked past those, but stopped at the cage holding a mutt. A giant beast of a dog, Rott and Mastiff if she had to venture a guess.

 

 It made her miss Dogmeat. But this had been no place for him. She wouldn’t drag a commonwealth dog out to a theme park full of raiders. So, she’d left him with Nick, and while the two were good company for each other, she missed them both.

 

“Little girls shouldn’t wander the pack alone at night. They might get picked off by a predator.”

 

Nora peered over her shoulder at the man who spoke. He was huge, tall and lined with muscles that showed through his tight tank top. A necklace of bones decorated his throat and paint covered his face. Gage had given her enough information that between his description and the authority pouring off this man, it had to be Mason.

 

She smiled, the sweet one she was used to. She didn’t try to act tough because it never worked. She was a hell of a shot and smart as hell, but she couldn’t intimidate anyone. “Probably not, but I think Overbosses are given a bit of leniency.”

 

He crossed his arms and leaned against the cage. It highlighted just how wide his chest was. “You don’t look much like an Overboss.”

 

“What do I look like, then?”

 

“You look sweet and delicious, like the best sort of prey. Right now, I’m finding it hard to believe you took out Colter.”

 

Nora shrugged, kneeling down and putting her fingers against the bars to coax the dog over. “Doesn’t matter what you believe. I’ve got a whole park of witnesses who saw it happen.”

 

The dog came over, pacing.

 

“Careful, that one bites. Was alpha of a pack, but the pack got killed off and he went a bit crazy. Alpha’s aren’t something you want to fuck with.”

 

“And you would know?”

 

“Yeah, I would. My name is Mason, and I’m top dog here.”

 

The dog prowled to where she had her fingers, leaning in and sniffing them. He slid his tongue out and licked her hand, gentle, before crouching in front of her.

 

“Well that’s fucking impressive,” Mason said, chuckling. “Not many could get a beast like that to submit.”

 

“It isn’t about submitting, it’s about realizing you aren’t enemies and figuring out how to live together. Believe it or not, the world doesn’t run on alphas and domination.”

 

“The fun parts of it does.” He reached for her to help her up, but the dog lunged at the bars. He didn’t react, only lifting an eyebrow at the agitated animal. “Seems you made a friend.”

 

Nora took his hand. He yanked her up, using far more strength than was needed, and she fell against his chest. The man was strong, and if his body didn’t tell her, that little move did.

 

She stepped backward, giving her space to breathe, to think. He was too much, too warm, and far too close.

 

“Well, I guess this counts as my pack meet and greet, then. Gage can stop bothering me now.”

 

“You be careful with Gage. He isn’t the sort you should trust.”

 

“And you are?”

 

Mason laughed. “Fuck, no. Not even a little bit. Have a good night, she-wolf.”

 

#

 

Mason chuckled as the girl scurried out of pack territory. The Overboss was fucking fun. Way better than that asshole Colter, and a lot nicer to look at.

 

He picked at her, but he’d heard how she’d taken Colter down. The woman might look like a delicate flower, but she had some fight in her. Flat out brawn hadn’t won them the parks. No one was tougher than Colter, no one ruled by the sword more, but that half-wit had the gangs at each other’s throats. Maybe they needed a lighter touch, and fuck if the little she-wolf didn’t have a light touch he’d love to have more experience with.

 

He leaned against the cage, the mutt inside snarling at him still, watching the gate she’d fled through. He hadn’t seen something that tempting in a long damned time, and fuck if he wasn’t ready for a good old hunt.

 

#

 

Nora paced her quarters in Fizztop Mountain. She’d spent so long building settlements and homes with walls, sleeping in a place open to the park felt exposed.

 

She liked walls.

 

Walls meant psychos like Nisha wouldn’t sneak in and gut her in the middle of the night on a whim. Walls meant Gage wouldn’t come up there and decide she was as bad a choice as Colter had been and slit her throat.

 

The lift’s motor cranked to life, and she sighed. More business. Only two days in and there was always more business. Someone else wanting something from her. Sure, she’d grown used to that in the Commonwealth, but there it wasn’t raiders looking for her help.

 

Mason’s smiling face appeared, and Nora took a step back, her hand going to her pistol. He was even bigger there, even more intimidating when surrounded by her things, standing out against the muted shades of her room.

 

“Settle down, little she-wolf; I’m not here to hurt you. In fact, I’ve come with a present.” The lift rose until it was even with the room, and the mutt from earlier appeared beside him.

 

“Why do you call me she-wolf?”

 

“You ever seen a female wolf? They can look sweet and pretty as can be, but fuck with their cubs and they’ll tear a man apart. Hell, I saw one take out the alpha of the pack after he’d fucked up too many times. You remind me of that she-wolf. Beautiful and lethal and fucking amazing.”

 

His words made her stomach tightened, made her tongue dart out to wet her lips. They shouldn’t affect her, but damnit, they did. “You’re giving me the dog? Why?”

 

Mason stepped off the lift, a chain wrapped around his hand that connected to the dog’s collar. It growled, but a muzzle kept its teeth in check. “Two reasons. First, you bonded with him. He wasn’t a stable beast before, but after you left? He’s been charging the gate to follow you. Figured I’d kill two birds this way. I’d earn some points and get rid of a troublesome animal.”

 

He walked over, stretching his hand out with the chain. His body sucked up all the space, even in the large and open quarters. Nora wasn’t a large woman, had grown accustomed to her friends dwarfing her, but Mason could make Danse look small. It was his size, but also the absolute authority he carried. He didn’t give a fuck if people liked him, he did what he damned well pleased and anyone who didn’t like it could fuck off.

 

Nora reached for the chain. When she slid her fingers around it, their skin touched, and she tried to jerk away. His reflexes made a mockery of hers, though, and he wrapped a hand around her wrist, holding her still as he set the chain in her hands. “Jumpy, aren’t you?”

 

“You make me nervous,” she admitted, even when she knew it was the last thing she should say. She needed people to respect her there, needed them to think she should handle this.

 

He tilted his head, his smile predatory. “Do I now?”

 

Nora swallowed hard, then blushed at the gulp that echoed in the room. Not the most Overboss behavior she’d ever seen, but she was doing her best. She wasn’t made to be an Overboss, or a raider at all. This had all been a big mistake, and when they realized it, someone was going to slit her throat.

 

“You said there were two reasons you’re giving me the dog.”

 

Mason leaned in until his breath spilled across her ear. “Because no she-wolf should sleep without an alpha in her bed.”


	2. Chapter 2

 

“So, you made a friend.” Gage lifted a lip and nodded at the dog curled up by Nora’s feet.

 

“Yes. Mason gave him to me.” She leaned down and scratch the dog behind his ear. She had slept better with the dog in her bed, better knowing no one was going to sneak up on her.

 

“You’re on some friendly terms with Mason, then? Might not look good to the rest of the gangs.”

 

“They’re welcome to give me gifts if they’d like, though I don’t think I’d care for anything the Disciples gave me.” She shuddered before turning back to the weapons bench.

 

“They’re going to think you’ve got something going on with Mason, something they ought to be worried about.”

 

“I thought I wasn’t supposed to worry about what they think, since I’m in charge.”

 

“You are, technically. But don’t forget that they’re raiders, they ain’t loyal to anything but power and caps. If they think you’re gonna fuck ‘em over, they’ll slit your throat.”

 

“And what about you?”

 

“What about me?”

 

“You were the one who set Colter up to get killed. Do I need to worry about you?” Mason’s words played in Nora’s head. Not that she needed the warning, she knew better than to trust any of these people.

 

But Gage was the easiest to forget it with. He was her guide to this fucked up world, the one person she had to explain to her how it all worked. It was damned easy to forget he’d been as responsible as she was for her predecessor’s death.

 

“Nah, Boss. You don’t have to worry about that. Colter wasn’t doing his job, that’s why that happened. You do your job, you ain’t got nothing to worry about from me.”

 

Nora frowned, the reassurance less, well, reassuring than she’d like.

 

“We’ll head out to Galactic Zone tomorrow. Make sure you’re ready to head out at dawn.”

 

“Sure, Boss. I’ll be ready. You need anything else?”

 

“No.”

 

#

 

Mason lounged in his chair on the stage, gaze tracing the pack. Bunch of animals, all fighting and fucking and clawing for power. He fed on that energy, soaked it up, loved being at the top of it all.

 

He tried to let it distract him, not that it had worked worth a damn. His mind kept retreating back to the Overboss, to the way her cheeks had flushed as he’d pulled back. He should have tried his luck, should have kissed her, should have tried to fuck her right then.

 

No. He knew how to hunt, and part of hunting was knowing your prey. She wasn’t easy prey, the sort he could muscle, the sort he could manipulate. He had to go slow with her, bait her, draw her in. He’d never had much patience, but that’s what this took, so he’d wait.

 

The way her nipples had tightened beneath that vault suit, the way her breath had hitched, yeah, she wanted him too. Just had to wait for the right moment.

 

And who came walking up but the little she-wolf herself?

 

“Overboss.” He grinned and nodded his head. “What brings you to my little corner?”

 

“I’m going after Galactic Zone in the morning.”

 

“Already? Aren’t you industrious.”

 

She frowned, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. Did she have a fucking clue how tempting that damned vault suit was? In the wild, the best mates were painted bright, fucking glorious. That’s how he saw her in that blue suit, like the best mate begging the biggest, strongest male to breed her. It hugged her curves, showing off where her waist dipping in, the flare of her hips, right where he wanted to hold her when he put her on all four.

 

“I need to repair the scope on my sniper rifle. I heard you might have some crystal.”

 

“You handy with weapons?”

 

“I’m handy with everything.”

 

“Oh, I’d love for you to show me.”

 

She sputtered, words coming out of her mouth in no specific order. Finally, she tried again. “I just mean I can build and repair things. Do you have the crystal or not?”

 

“I do. The cost is high though.”

 

“How high?”

 

“Come sit with me.” He patted his leg.

 

“I’m not sitting in your lap.”

 

Yeah, he hadn’t expected her to fall for that. Probably best, really. Last thing either of ‘em needed was anyone questioning her just yet.

 

He snapped his fingers at a pack member to his left. “Get the Overboss a chair.”

 

#

 

Nora sat in the chair to Mason’s left, trying to hide the way her thigh bounced, anxiety surging through her. Her heart felt like a Deathclaw tap dancing right then, and she couldn’t get it to slow.

 

“So me sitting here is worth some crystal?”

 

“Woulda given you the crystal for free. Just wanted a little one on one with my she wolf.”

 

“I’m not yours.”

 

“Sure you are. You just don’t know it yet.”

 

Nora leaned away from Mason, even though their seats touched. She took in the Pack territory in the daytime, in full swing.

 

They moved like wild animals, snarling and snapping at each other. She’d watch the old documentaries as a child, the way the wolves in a pack would force each other to follow hierarchy, and it all rang through with these raiders.

 

Then she caught sight of two near a back corner. A woman was pressed down on all four, her pants shoved to her knees, face against the ground. A man behind her held her there, leaned over her, teeth buried in her shoulder as he pounded into her. Nora almost got up, almost went over, until the woman’s face made it perfectly clear.

 

She fucking loved it.

 

“See something that interests you?” Mason’s low voice caught her by surprise, and she jumped. “No, keep watching.” He put a hand on the back of her neck and used a finger at her jaw to turn her gaze back to the couple. “Happens like that a lot here. Hormones run high, and we aren’t the sort to worry about social taboos. Most times you’ll find people fucking somewhere around here, sometimes men, sometimes women, sometimes any combination of ‘em. Sometimes two people, often a lot more.”

 

“Why do they do it in the open?” She cursed how breathy her voice came out, the need colored through it.

 

“Sometimes you can’t wait. Sometimes you want it too bad to fucking care who is watching. Hell, sometimes you want people to see. Oh, she-wolf, I’d love the whole damned pack to see my take you like that.”

 

She pulled in a breath like she was underwater, gasping, unable to hide the reaction.

 

“You like that idea, huh? You’ve got more pack in your than you let on. You want me to do that? Pull off that pretty vault suit of yours, strip you down to nothing. I’d probably have to remind a few of the men exactly who’s in charge, because they’d all want a taste. But you’re mine, and I wouldn’t let ‘em have you.”

 

Nora wrapped her hands around the armrest of the chair, her knuckles blanching. “I don’t like being watched.”

 

“You sure? Because I’m gonna bet you’re fucking wet right now, thinking about it. Maybe I’d have you ride me right here, on my throne, nice and slow. Ah, I’d be so good to you. Bet you haven’t really been fucked well in a while.”

 

His thumb rubbed along her pulse, but the touch went straight to her cunt. She crossed her legs, trying to ignore the pressure, the want.

 

The man across the way finished inside the woman. Nora expected him to pull out, rough, to shove her away. He didn’t, though. He pulled out, rolled her over, spread her legs, and fastened his mouth on her cunt. Her eyes widened.

 

Mason’s chuckle rumbled from his chest. “Well well, looks like we’ve found something else you’re interested in, huh? You want to feel my tongue, she-wolf? You want me to lick you until you’re screaming my name?”

 

Nora shook her head, not trusting her voice to carry the lie.

 

“Yeah, you do. You want a hell of a lot, I think, but you’re not willing to give in just yet. That’s alright, I can wait. I’m fucking good at waiting.” He pulled his hand away, and Nora whimpered. “You come find me when you want something, yeah? Now go grab the crystal from the guard by the gate, and then run along, my little she-wolf.”

 

Nora bolted from the stage.


	3. Chapter 3

“Suck it up,” Gage hissed, pressing a hand against Nora’s shoulder. She winced, but shoved it off her face. “You want these gangs to respect you? You can’t show weakness. Head up.”

 

“You can suck it up when you’ve got chunks ripped out of your side, huh?”

 

“They see you limping in here after taking a park and they’ll eat you alive.”

 

“Really? Because injured or not, I did what none of them managed.”

 

“Doesn’t matter. It’s all about looks here, and you need to look invincible. Just gotta make it past the Disciples place and you can lick your wounds.”

 

Nora drew her hands into fists and forced herself to cross the last distance. A few raiders said things, but she ignored it. The only thing she focused on was the lift. Gage waved off anyone who got too close.

 

Once up in her place, she collapsed. Fuck Gage, she didn’t care if he saw. Her fingers pressed against her side.

 

“You’ve gotta be careful, Boss. Looks are everything here. Look weak, someone’s gonna try and take your place.”

 

“Thanks, you’re a real sweetheart. Don’t think I didn’t notice you staying pretty damned far back during the fighting.”

 

“Hey, I’m not Overboss for a reason. It’s your job to pull this place together. I’m just here to make sure you do it right.”

 

“Yeah, I think I’ve had enough of your company for one day. Why don’t you get out of here?”

 

He nodded at her side. “I could patch you up. You bleed out on the floor, it’s my ass in a grave beside yours.”

 

“Well, I wouldn’t want to inconvenience you by dying or anything. Look, go home, or wherever it is you crawl off to when you’re not busy manipulating people into doing your biding. I can take care of myself.”

 

Gage took a step toward her, but the dog crouched down, fangs bared. Gage huffed once before turning around and taking the lift down.

 

Nora pressed her hand to her side and laid back on the floor, too tired to move, to do anything else. A bit of sleep and she’d deal with all this.

 

#

 

Mason was going to kill the fuckwit the next time he saw him. Not that he’d ever been a fan of that two-faced son of a bitch, Gage, but this was too far, even for him.

 

Nora laid on the ground, blood pooling beneath her, Gage nowhere in sight.

 

She’d made a good show of walking through the raiders after taking The Galactic Zone and giving it to The Pack, so Mason had come to say a personal thank you, only to find her in this condition.

 

Gage had known she’d been hurt, no way to miss it, not with the blood soaked through her suit.

 

The dog snarled at Mason, but a glare back had him backing down. He slid his arms beneath Nora. Damn, the girl weighed less than the damned dog he’d given her.

 

She whimpered as he moved her into the bed, then he grabbed the medkit from behind the bar. When he pulled down the zipper on her vaultsuit, she did wake. Her hand wrapped around his wrist, eyes clouded in pain but wary.

 

“Easy there,” he said, trying to keep his voice even. “Just surveying the damage.”

 

“What are you doing here?”

 

“Came to thank you for the park, but I found you unconscious on the floor.”

 

“Sleeping on the floor is good for your back.”

 

“And sleeping in puddles of blood? What does that do for you?”

 

“Keeps me young and beautiful.”

 

He grinned, charmed by her banter. “Well, seems to be working. Come on, now, let me see.”

 

She didn’t give in right away, but after a moment, her hand released his wrist, one finger at a time. He pulled the zipper down to her belly button to reveal a gash on her ribs, deep enough he caught sight of bone.

 

“Shit. What took a bite out of you?”

 

“Took a corner and didn’t see the Mr. Handy with a buzzsaw fast enough.” She hissed through her teeth as he pressed a stimpack into the area.

 

“And why isn’t Gage here?”

 

“I kicked him out. Took the hit because he isn’t worth his weight in a fight in the first place, and he couldn’t do anything but complain at me on the trip back. Turns out I’m grumpy when I’m hurt.”

 

Mason laughed. Yeah, the girl might act delicate, but she had a backbone in her. Hell, she’d taken the Galactic Zone and Colter couldn’t have managed that.

 

“You got anymore injuries I should know about?”

 

“Bumps and bruises, mostly.”

 

“Well, I should probably check for myself.” He wrapped his fingers around the curve of her hip, exposed because of the gaping of her vault suit. The white of her basic bra hid her breasts, and he wanted to tear it off with his teeth.

 

No, too fast.

 

“I’m fine.”

 

“I wouldn’t be a very good underling if I didn’t make sure the boss was okay.”

 

“You aren’t an underling to anyone.”

 

“I can pretend.” He leaned down and nipped at her earlobe before sucking it into his mouth to soothe the spot. “Come on. I’ll keep my hands to myself, be totally professional.”

 

“I find that hard to believe while you tongue my ear.”

 

“Would you rather I tongue somewhere else?” He let his gaze dip down meaningfully between her legs.

 

Nora sat up and scooted back on the bed. The stimpack had started to work, her color better, the wound knitting back together. It had to hurt, but he’d distracted her enough she didn’t seem to notice. “That’s not what I meant.”

 

“Pity. Look, Boss, you’re not exactly up to what I want to do to you tonight, anyway. Let’s get you stripped down and make sure you’re not leaking anywhere else, alright?”

 

“I’m not going to have sex with you.”

 

“Not tonight, no. But I think we both know it’ll happen.”

 

#

 

Nora rallied her self-control, which had turned to dust in the face of Mason’s confidence. Yeah, them sleeping together was a foregone conclusion, but she was nothing if not someone who fought the foregone.

 

“Alright.” Damnit, why couldn’t she sound more confident?

 

He laughed and held a hand out to her. He didn’t yank like he had the first night, only pulled to get her to her feet. Once on her feet, Mason slid the vault suit down, over her shoulders and off her arms, careful to avoid the injury on her ribs.

 

The suit hung at her waist, and he knelt in front of her. “Hands on my shoulders,” he ordered.

 

Nora did as he said, too unstable to consider arguing, to think about why she couldn’t let him give commands. His skin was warm, and she wanted to bury her face in the crook of his neck, breathing in his scent, lose herself in it all.

 

He lifted each foot and slid off the boots, tossing them aside. Then his hands gripped the material at her hips and eased the suit down her thighs, working it off each foot, just as he had with her boots.

 

“Bet Gage didn’t have a mark on him,” he growled, hot breath striking her ribs. “Fucking pussy.”

 

“I told you it was just bumps and bruises.”

 

He leaned in and drug his tongue over a bruise on the outside of her thigh. Nora went to pull away, but his hands wrapped around her waist, spanning from his thumbs on her hips to his fingertips that wrapped around her ass. The size of those hands startled her.

 

“I thought you said you’d be professional.”

 

He tossed her a grin, and with him kneeling there it looked devious. “I am. You ever seen an animal help another wounded animal? It’s a lot of licking, she-wolf.”

 

“You’re not an animal.”

 

He kissed a wound on the front of her thigh, then licked the spot, tongue tracing the line of her panties. “That’s where you’re wrong. I am very much an animal. I may walk, I may talk, but don’t make any mistakes about exactly what I am.” He took the hip band of her panties between his teeth and pulled softly on it, then let it go with a snap against her skin.

 

“Ow.”

 

He chuckled and kissed the spot before standing up. “Come on, get in the bed. Don’t worry about the sheets, you’ve got plenty more, and this bed has seen its share of blood already.”

 

Nora frowned. Mason wasn’t the sort to give up what he wanted, and it seemed clear he wanted her, so why was he leaving? She crossed an arm over her chest, suddenly self-conscious, uneasy in the face of rejection. “That’s it?”

 

He ran a finger over her cheek, then across her bottom lip. “I told you, you have to ask when you want something. So, is that it?”

 

Nora wasn’t sure where it came from, but she gripped behind his neck and pulled him down toward her for a kiss. She breathed him in, trying to drown herself in his taste, in his strength. Right then, none of the weirdness her life had become bothered her. Not Gage, not the Disciples, not the park full of raiders. With Mason there, none of that was a threat.

 

He groaned, like she’d surprised the fuck out of him and he liked it. His hand yanked her against him, against the unyielding lines of his body, but she cried out when it pulled at her injury.

 

Mason broke the kiss but didn’t apologize, didn’t stumble over sorrys like most men she knew would have. He laughed and shook his head. “Yeah, too fucking fragile right now for what I want. Sleep well, she-wolf. I’ll see you tomorrow.”


	4. Chapter 4

Nora woke with a gasp, head throbbing and muscles aching from the trails the day before. “Ah hell,” she muttered.

 

“Morning, Boss.”

 

“What are you doing here, Gage?” Nora pulled the blanket over her to hide her half-naked state. She didn’t need Gage seeing her like that.

 

“Look, I’m sorry ‘bout yesterday. I dealt with Colter a long time, and I needed to know you could hold your own. You proved you could, that you got what it takes, but I shoulda’ been nicer last night. You need a stimpack?”

 

“No, thanks. I managed just fine on my own.” She stood, ignoring the way her muscles protested the movement, wrapping the blanket around her like a toga.

 

“Heard Mason stopped by last night.”

 

“How exactly is that any of your business?”

 

Gage sighed, picking up a clean vault suit from Nora’s pack and throwing it to her. “Look, we’ve been on a bad foot these last few days, no need to keep going like that. I want this to work, I want you to do well. With any partnership, people got to adjust to each other. The mean thing worked with Colter, but it ain’t working with you. I can change.”

 

Nora caught the suit. “Turn around.”

 

Gage obeyed, giving her his back. “Figured we’d go see Mags and William today. They’re hoping for the bottling plant, so maybe we go and play nice with ‘em, make some friends.”

 

At least he wasn’t trying to get her to play nice with Nisha, since that wasn’t happening. She’d had nightmares about that woman almost every night.

 

“I’ve got friends.”

 

“Friends like Mason?”

 

“Yes, Friends like Mason, not that it is any of your business.”

 

Gage peered over his shoulder, checking if she was decent, before turning to face her. “Mason can’t be trusted. Hell, The Pack can’t be trusted. They’re wild and they like to bite the hand that feeds ‘em.”

 

“Why do you care?”

 

Gage set a hand beneath her chin and lifted her gaze to his. “Because, believe it or not, I don’t want to see you get killed. You’re stepping in here without the experience of dealing with these animals, so I want you to listen, to hear what I’m telling you. You don’t have to do a damned thing, just listen, okay?”

 

Nora took a step back, pulling from his touch. How did Gage do this? One day he was hard, almost vicious with her. Now he acted like her best friend.

 

Was it all a game? Was he playing a part?

 

He was right about one thing, Nora did need to listen. “Alright. We will go see William and Mags.”

 

#

 

The Operators place was nicer than the rest, with an old-world charm Nora had to admit, she liked. Maybe that was her problem, though. They felt fake, just people playing games from a world that had died a long time ago.

 

She’d come for her initial meet and greet, but she’d kept that short. A few words exchanged before she’d run away. After dealing with the Pack and the Disciples, she’d wanted nothing to do with this little park of theirs.

 

“Ah, Overboss,” William offered as she walked in, Gage beside her.

 

“Morning. Your sister around?”

 

He shook his head. “Mags is off on errands. Want to come on into the office to discuss business?”

 

Gage took a seat in the main room, and Nora hesitated. “Not coming with me?”

 

“I’m shit for business deals, Boss. Go on, I’ll be here if you need me. You’ve got to stand on your own sometimes.”

 

Nora frowned but walked behind William, into the office that held a desk and a chair. William sat in the chair, so Nora leaned against the desk. She didn’t want to get comfortable. She wanted this over as quickly as they could manage.

 

“So, I understand you’re hoping for the Bottling Plant?”

 

William stretched his legs out until his feet caged hers in. “Yeah. We know you’ve only taken one park, so we don’t plan on getting our panties bunched up over giving it to the Pack. We just want to make sure you’re thinking of us, next.” He leaned forward, setting his hands on her hips. “What can we do to make sure you’re thinking of us?”

 

Nora stammered and tried to scoot back. The action only caused her to fully sit on the desk, and William took it as an offer. He stood and moved between her thighs.

 

“Come on, Boss. Last I heard, Mason is paying you visits at night. I can promise you, I can do more than that beast can.” He slid his hand up her side, then cupped her breast through the suit. “Bet he takes you hard, but Boss, I’d be slow, so gentle. I’d show you a good time, anytime you wanted it, anyway you wanted it.”

 

Nora batted his hand away, but he didn’t seem to notice. He pulled her forward on the desk, pressing his lips to her neck, still whispering between kisses. “Just give in. No one has to know, just you and me here. You work damn hard, even got yourself hurt giving that park over to those animals. Lay back, I promise you won’t regret it.”

 

For a moment, Nora considered it. She hadn’t actually done anything with Mason, but all the tension between them had her wound tight. All she had to do was give in. Just not say no. She didn’t have to think, didn’t have to worry. Here William was, offering, willing. God knew he wasn’t bad looking, softer around the edges than Mason, and she’d bet he was right that he could show her a good time.

 

But he didn’t bring out the same need in her. And he wasn’t here because he wanted her, but because he wanted something from her.

 

Nora shoved his shoulders, and after a moment, he backed up, hands raised.

 

“I’m not going to force you, Boss. Just a bit of negotiation.”

 

“Well I’m not interested, okay? That isn’t how this works. That isn’t how I work.” Her chest pounded, angry, embarrassed. Heat had spread over her cheeks, her chest. She wasn’t a charity case, she didn’t need people offering themselves up to buy something from her. Was that all they saw in her? Just someone to barter their bodies with? Willing to take one for the team?

 

“Whoa, love, I get it. It’s okay. Just thought this might help secure some lines of communication between us. You don’t want that? Fine. But, the offer stands. Colter kept the gangs close like this.”

 

“You slept with Colter?”

 

“Me? No. He wasn’t into men. Mags and Nisha? Yeah. And anyone Mason wanted to send over. That’s how this game works. You start playing favorites, people are going to question you. You don’t want what we offer, they’re not gonna trust you. You already have Mason, so if you don’t start tasting elsewhere, people are going to think you’re picking sides. You’re just settling in, I get that. Think it over, okay? You know where to find me, and if I’m not your type, you let me know what you’re into and I’ll find it for you.”

 

Nora slid off the desk. “Don’t hold your breath.”

 

 She left, slamming the door behind her. Fuck this place and their games.

 

Gage frowned before he stood up, looking like he’d expected their meeting to take a hell of a lot longer. “Everything alright?”

 

“Fine. I’m taking a walk.”

 


	5. Chapter 5

Mason spotted his she-wolf up on the roof of the Galactic Zone control room. He’d heard about William’s ploy, word traveled fast in their world, and when she hadn’t been at her place, he’d made a guess. She’d changed out of her vault suit, wearing jeans and a t-shirt that would help keep her from being noticed.

 

Judging from the tension in her shoulders, she hadn’t fallen for the Operators play. Not that he would have blamed her; if he liked men, well, William made for a pretty one. Not a lot of bones one could dangle better looking, or with more skill from what he’d heard. Wasn’t as if she and Mason had anything between them, not yet, and in a life like this you didn’t bother with monogamy. Still, the idea of that pretty boy all over her? He shoved the growl back down before it could escape.

 

“Wondered how long it would take you to find me.” Her legs dangled over the edge, swinging back and forth.

 

“Not afraid of heights, I take it?”

 

She grinned over her shoulder at him. “Try climbing to the top of Trinity Tower and still having a problem with heights. Or if you really want a rush, I’ll take you for a ride on a vertibird up to the Prydwen sometime. Commonwealth doesn’t let you have hang ups for long until you either get over them, or they kill you.” She cocked up an eyebrow. “Don’t tell me the big bad alpha is afraid of heights?”

 

Mason huffed and sat beside her. “Not a bit.” He slung an arm over her shoulder. “Feeling better this morning?”

 

“Well, I think all my organs are in their right spots, doing their jobs, so I’ll take that as a win. And, thank you, for helping me.”

 

“What a boring end to your story, huh?”

 

“Yeah, I mean, after the whole frozen for 220 years, and blowing up the Institute, and I once rescued a kid from a fridge, I should get something epic for an end.”

 

“You’re trying to tell me you were the one to blow up the Institute?” He couldn’t help the skepticism in his voice. “Heard the Brotherhood of Steel did that little job.”

 

“Leave it to Arthur to take all the credit.” The other man’s name on her lips had Mason lifting his lip in a silent snarl. She sounded far too familiar with the well-known Elder Maxson. Nora tilted her head to the side and pulled at the collar of her shirt. Her fingers touched a white scar just over her heart. “Took a bullet from a courser in the SRB on our way in. Arthur may have supplied the bodies, but I got us the intel, I built the transporter to get in in the first place, and I set the bomb that blew them to hell.”

 

Mason touched the scar, a wound that could have easily meant death. He reappraised her, titling his head. So, she’d not only done away with Colter and lasted their Gauntlet, but the little she-wolf had done away with the biggest threat the commonwealth had dealt with in a long time. And he didn’t consider she might be lying, because she couldn’t lie worth a damn. “Impressive.”

 

Nora shrugged, pulling her shirt back in place. “That was another life. I’ve had a few of those, now.”

 

Mason leaned over and nipped at her shoulder. “Why didn’t you say yes to William?”

 

“How do you know I didn’t?”

 

“Because you’re leaning into my touch like you can’t get enough. No satisfied woman would do that, which means you weren’t satisfied, and if you’d said yes to him he’d have done that, I’m sure. Means you must have said no.” He set his hands on her hips and pulled her over until she sat on the ledge between his legs, her back to his chest. “So why did you say no?”

 

“He wasn’t interested in me, just in what he thought I could give him.”

 

“Sounds pretty much like life. Doesn’t answer why you said no.”

 

“I’m no one’s charity fuck.” She flinched at her own use of the word. “That may be what is bartered with now, but I don’t do that. Is that what you’re doing? Are you here because you want to ‘secure the lines of communication?’”

 

“Fuck that. I’m here because ever since you pranced into my territory, I can’t stop thinking about you. I’m Pack, I don’t play games like that. I want something, I take it. Leave the maneuvering to the others.”

 

“William said you sent women to Colter.”

 

“Yeah. I sent women who wanted to fuck him, women who hoped it’d buy them some favors. I ain’t Nisha and I ain’t Mags and I ain’t William, trading my ass for anything. I want something, I fight till I have it. If I can’t get it that way, I don’t want it.”

 

“Well, if I ever have sex again, it’ll be because I want the person and they want me, not because of stupid games.”

 

“If? Oh, boss, we already discussed it’ll happen. How longs it been, anyway?” He spread his hand out against her stomach. He missed the tight way the vault suit hugged her, but when his fingers dipped beneath her shirt, he had to admit, this outfit had advantages.

 

She sighed, resting her head back against his shoulder, giving him access to her neck. He drug his teeth over her pulse.

 

“A very long time.”

 

“So, ask me.” He popped the button on her pants, letting his fingers slid just beneath the band.

 

“Ask you what?”

 

Mason laughed at her attempt to pretend to be naïve. She knew exactly what, but if she wanted to hear it? Hell, he wasn’t shy. “Ask me to make you come, she-wolf. Right here, looking over the Park you took back, the raiders who are loyal to me, and now to you. I won’t even make you beg for it, not right now. Just ask me and I’ll finger you ‘til you can’t think straight, ‘till you’re coming all over my hand.”

 

Her hips arched forward, like she could already imagine it. He didn’t move more, though, only waited. She could be stubborn, but he needed her to want it, to ask for it. It built a bridge, made it a two-way street, baited her in closer. Prey like her had to be dealt with carefully. Push ‘em too far without making them engage and they turned tail and ran.

 

He bit down on the crook of her neck, hard. “Ask me; you know you want to.”

 

“Please,” she gasped.

 

“Please what?”

 

“Please make me come.”

 

Fuck, he’d never heard better words, especially the way they came out, breathy, desperate, and so fucking shy. He didn’t waste any time, sliding his hand down the front of her jeans and into her panties. She spread her legs to accommodate him. Yeah, already wet. He’d figured as much. Bet she’d been wet since that first night, wanting this but not willing to give in.

 

But anything worthwhile took time.

 

 He pushed a finger into her cunt, the heel of his palm pressing against her clit. “Fuck, sweetheart, you are tight. Weren’t kidding when you said it’d been a while.”

 

She didn’t answer, hell, he wasn’t sure she even heard him. Her hips thrust forward, lost in the way he played with her, in whatever went through her head. He liked her undone, liked having her mindless beneath his touch.

 

“We’re gonna have to do this a bit, huh? Get you ready to take me, because you ain’t ready now. I’d hurt you, she-wolf, and I don’t think you’d like that.” He slid his other hand beneath her shirt, pushing the cups of her bra out of the way and capturing a nipple between two fingers. He rolled it, drawing broken moans from her lips. “That’s okay, though. Don’t mind taking my time with you, don’t mind that at all.”

 

He growled as he pushed a second finger into her tightness, as her body squeezed against him, against the intrusion. Her legs tried to close, but his hand between them meant they couldn’t go far. “It’s alright. Breathe.” When she relaxed, he started to move again, hooking his fingers up as he slid them in, his hand covered in her wetness. Fuck, he wanted to lick his hand clean, he wanted to push her back and taste her, hold her down and take his time with her.

 

He shook his head, trying to stay focused, trying to ignore the way his cock was trapped between their bodies.

 

“You know, anyone could look up here and see us.”

 

Her hands went to his thighs, digging in.

 

“I knew you’d like that. I remember you watching those two fucking that night, the way you licked your lips. Fuck, you like being watched, yeah?”

 

She shook her head, but her nails never retreated, never eased from his skin.

 

“Liar. You don’t lie worth shit, you know that? That’s okay, though. It can wait.” Mason sped his fingers up, tightening the hand on her breast. He wanted to feel her come on his fingers, wanted to be the one to draw this from her.

 

She’d turned down William, it sounded like she’d turned down a hell of a lot of people already, and he wanted this. It was that part of him that made him fight to be Alpha, the one that made him need to be in charge, on top, owning everything. He wanted to own her, too, he wanted to claim her like no one else could. This she-wolf, this girl who did what no one else could do, he wanted to turn her into his.

 

Blood seeped down his leg as her nailed scored his thighs when she came, breath stilling in her chest, like even her lungs refused to work as her body cranked down.

 

Fuck, it made him want more. He wanted to bury his teeth in her neck and his cock in her body, he wanted to show everyone she was his. He was fucking alpha, and he wanted her.

 

She whimpered when his fingers slid against her clit as he withdrew them, her body too sensitive now. She laid back, against him, more relaxed than he’d felt it, than he’d seen it. She drew in a shuddering breath, then seemed to remember where she was.

 

Nora pulled from his grip, movements shaky. He let her go.

 

Remember the game. Remember the objective. He couldn’t take her anyway, even if he wanted to. He wasn’t kidding, the girl would take some work to get her ready, and even then, it wouldn’t be easy.

 

She rebuttoned her pants, standing on the roof, and fuck if she didn’t look like the prey he always thought of her as. Her chest pounded, a rabbit who’d gone and curled up with a tiger on accident, one who’d just realized her mistake.

 

Mason hopped to his feet, towering over her.

 

“This wasn’t- we can’t- this can’t happen.”

 

“Why not? Last I checked you were in charge and could do the fuck you want to do. You going to try to lie to me and say you didn’t enjoy it? That you didn’t need it?”

 

She broke eye contact, went to studying his feet, like she wouldn’t risk taking her gaze off him entirely, but his face was too personal. Mason reached out and tilted her chin up, then licked his fingers clean. Her brows drew together, a moan escaping before she stopped it, as if it surprised her.

 

“I enjoyed it, that’s for fucking sure. You want to do it again, you have an itch that needs some scratching, well come get me she-wolf.”

 

Nora went to take a step back, but Mason caught her first. He pulled her against him, using a grip on her ass to lift her slightly as he took her mouth. He couldn’t fuck her yet, couldn’t show everyone she was his, but he thrust his tongue into her mouth for as close as he could manage. She gave in, melting against him, against his touch.

 

He broke the kiss and bit her neck, hard enough she gasped. His lips closed around the spot, sucking, marking her. He couldn’t fuck her, but he could damn well brand her.

 

It wasn’t enough, but it would have to be for then.

 

When he let her go, she ran.

 

Fuck, didn’t she know hunters loved it when they ran?


	6. Chapter 6

“Best to avoid the Disciples.” Gage walked beside Nora as they re-entered the park. “They aren’t gonna be very happy with you.”

 

“Well, I’ve only taken two parks, so of course one gang would be mad. This takes time.”

 

“I know that, but until we give them a park, it’s best to keep under the radar, unless you’d like an extra hole in you.”

 

“I feel like that’s the set up to a filthy raider joke.”

 

“Didn’t think we had that sort of relationship, Boss.” He set a hand on the small of her back as they climbed onto the lift.

 

Nora looked down at his hand, then back up at him. “We don’t.”

 

Gage laughed and pulled his hand away. “Fair enough. Look, while we were out, you got a message from back home, from Sanctuary Hills? Trader passed it to me when we were selling off our gear.”

 

“What kind of message?”

 

“Seems you’re more popular than you let on. Arthur Maxson wants to see you aboard the Prydwen.” He handed over a piece of paper with writing on it. Even from there, Nora could tell the perfect letters were Arthur’s. No one else wrote like he did.

 

Of course he wanted to see her. Arthur wasn’t the sort of man to let her head off for weeks on end without word. Then again, he was at least half the reason she’d run off to Nuka World in the first place.

 

“Gotta say, never figured I’d get to head up to that ship.”

 

“And you won’t.”

 

“You going alone? Not the best idea, Boss. What if he catches word of your new alliances here?”

 

“No. I’m not going at all, at least not yet. I’ve got another few weeks before he gets insistent, I hope.” Nora crumpled the piece of paper and tossed it onto the counter. What she didn’t mention was that insistent would mean Brotherhood soldiers in Power Armor walking through the Nuka World park.

 

“You given anymore thought to William’s offer?”

 

Nora frowned, pulling her shoe off. “So you knew about that? Could have given me some warning.”

 

“It’s the way the game is played. People in power enjoy the benefits of that power. Didn’t think that was something I had to warn you about.”

 

“I’m not about to go screwing people as benefits of my position.”

 

“I can ask Mags. She isn’t opposed to women, if that’s more your thing.”

 

“Why is everyone trying to get me in bed with everyone else?”

 

Gage slid a hand behind her neck. “Because it’s how you make alliances, Boss. Fucking people keeps ‘em close. You’re already fucking Mason, and it’s causing some tension.”

 

“I’m not fucking Mason.”

 

Gage tilted his head, his thumb rubbing against her neck. “You’re not? I’d imagine he’d have locked that down already.”

 

“No one ‘locks this down,’ Gage. And who I fuck and when I fuck them is not your business. These gangs will listen to me because I’m getting things done. I’m giving them what they want. I don’t need to crawl into anyone’s bed.”

 

Gage smiled, condescension through it. “Alright, we can try it your way. Don’t say I didn’t warn you when people start competing.”

 

Nora pulled back, trying to get out of his grip, but he didn’t let up.

 

“Let me kiss you, Boss.”

 

“What? Why?”

 

“Because I want to. Because I bet you need to. You don’t want to trust the gangs, sounds like Mason isn’t taking care of shit, so let me try. Let me kiss you. You can trust me. I’ve got your back, ain’t gonna let nothing happen to you here.”

 

“No. Let go of me.”

 

Gage pulled her in and pressed his lips to hers. Nora bit down on his lip, and he laughed while pulling away, like blood didn’t trickle down his face. “Alright, fine. Offer stands, though.”

 

He let her go and Nora walked out.

 

#

 

 “No love for the Disciples?”

 

Nora put her hands on her weapon, backing away from the three raiders, all dressed in the rags of the Disciples. She knew better than walking around in alone, making her a target.

 

“Back off.”

 

“So let me get this straight? You’re fucking the Pack alpha, and giving parks to the Operators, but what about us? Trust me, if there’s one gang you don’t want to fuck with, it’s us. Nisha doesn’t forgive easily.”

 

“I’ve taken two parks, you’ll get yours with the next one.”

 

“Last? Fuck being last. What if we take what we want now, huh? Carve a little of you away, let you keep that as a memento, give you something so you don’t forget us.” 

 

Another joined, bringing the count to four. “Don’t do this. You can still walk away right now.”

 

Laughter floated from them, from all or one or she didn’t know. They advanced, and Nora had given her last warning. She pulled her pistol out and unloaded the first shot into one’s chest. Once you had to shoot, you shoot to kill. Her father had taught her that much.

 

The remaining leapt at her. She’d lost count, swore there were more than at first. She hit the ground, hard, the air knocked from her lungs. Bodies pinned her, grabbing, yanking. Nails cut into her, and the bit of a blade screamed through her shoulder.

 

Think. She was a fucking Sentinel of the Brotherhood. Nora brought her head back into the nose of one attacker, then flipped, catching another’s jaw with her elbow.

 

“So, the Overboss has some fight in her, huh?” The last one wrapped his hands around her throat.

 

Nora’s brain blanked for a moment, doing nothing but struggling, reacting on instinct, striving for air. No. Settle. She stilled, then reached up into the rags of the raider above her. Disciples always had blades.

 

Always.

 

Sure enough, at his waist, she found it. Her fingers wrapped around the hilt, then thrust the blade into their ribs. She shoved him off her and rolled over, coughing, lungs spasming as they drew in air.

 

The pounding of footsteps drew her attention. Gage. She turned toward him, but all she found was the black boot of a Disciple that crashed into her face.

 

Everything went dark.


	7. Chapter 7

 

 A hand pressed something cool to her face, and Nora leaned into the touch. Who was it? Nick, maybe. He’d always been sweet. Danse would treat her wounds, but he’d never have so much of himself resting against her. He always held regulations as holy.

 

Arthur?

 

Nora bolted up, shoving the hand away.

 

“Easy, Boss. Just me.”

 

Gage.

 

“What happened?”

 

“Don’t remember your little run in with the Disciples?”

 

She frowned, recalling it even as her head begged her to go back to sleep. Yeah, she remembered. “Where are they?”

 

“Already strung up at the market place as a warning not to fuck with the Overboss.”

 

She remembered him charging in. “Or you?”

 

“Hell, you’d already dispatched four of ‘em yourself. That last was just a sucker punch. Look, you shouldn’t go walking around alone like that.” He wrapped a hand around her shoulder and eased her back on the bed, replacing the cold cloth on her swollen cheek. “Ain’t safe. Even if every gang were happy with you, there’s always someone looking to move up in life. You ain’t got to be scared, but you got to be smart. You should keep me with you more often.”

 

Nora ignored the advice, though with how her body felt, it sounded pretty damn sound. “What does Nisha have to say?”

 

“Nisha apologized up and down, said she has no idea what got into those boys.”

 

“You believe her?”

 

Gage shrugged. “Who the fuck knows. Maybe she’s telling the truth and it’s just tensions running high, but maybe she wanted you out of the way and this was safest. I’d just be careful.”

 

“Thank you for saving me.”

 

“Hell, Boss, I told you I had your back. Maybe you want to start believing me? Trusting me a little? I got you into this mess and I aim to keep you alive for it.” His free hand rubbed along Nora’s arm.

 

What was this? How did he manage to change so quickly? She couldn’t get a read on him, not one that lasted long. But he had saved her, right? She took a deep breath, trying to sort through it all.

 

“What do you need?”

 

“Sleep. Just, some sleep.”

 

“Some people are wanting to check on you. I’d suggest you didn’t let ‘em in till you’re on your feet.”

 

“Who?”

 

“William, but he’s trustworthy, for a raider. Mackenzie wants to take a look at your head, and Mason’s been prowling around downstairs.”

 

“Let Mason in and tell the rest I’ll see ‘em tomorrow.”

 

“You sure that’s wise? Mason is the last in that group I’d recommend.”

 

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

 

Gage frowned, but stood to leave.

 

#

 

Mason paced at the bottom of the lift, half ready to climb the fucking ladder to check on Nora. To think the Disciples had jumped her. Fucking cowards. According to what he’d heard, she put up a hell of a fight. Not that it surprised him, that girl could bite when she wanted to.

 

“She’ll see you,” Gage said, stepping off the lift. “Watch yourself, Mason.”

 

Mason stood tall, above Gage’s height even if they carried similar muscle mass. Still, Gage was a plotter, not a fighter. He was a coward who stood behind others and pulled strings.

 

Fuck Gage.

 

“If I find out this was you. . .”

 

“What the fuck are you talking about? Disciples did this, got a dozen witnesses who say it.”

 

“You may have Nora tricked, but don’t think I don’t see you for what you are, a manipulative son of a bitch looking for easy power. It ain’t below you to set her up to get jumped just so you can run in and save the day.”

 

“Afraid she’s gonna stop listening to you? Afraid she’s gonna realize you’re just some animal in charge of a group of other fucking animals. You’re going nowhere fast, Mason, and she could do anything she wanted with the right people behind her. She needs a friend? I’ll be her friend. She needs a fuck buddy, I’ll be that, too. She isn’t gonna need you for long, so why don’t you go on up there before she realizes you’re useless.”

 

Mason let Gage go. It wasn’t the time for that. If he gutted him here, everything fell apart.

 

The ride up to Fizztop Mountain took fucking forever. At the top, he caught sight of Nora, laying back on the bed, wet cloth over the side of her face.

 

Looking a hell of a lot like she did the night after Galactic Zone. Fuck, the girl didn’t take a hit well.

 

“Hey, she-wolf,” he called as he walked up, not wanting to startle her.

 

She turned, a lazy smile.

 

No, not lazy, fucking drugged.

 

“Hey. You’re not a wolf, you know that?”

 

“What?” He sat on the side of the bed.

 

“You call me a she-wolf, but you’re not a. . . a he-wolf.” She giggled. A real, fucking giggle. What the hell?

 

“I’m not?”

 

“No. Wolves are pack animals. You’re a lion. Top of the food chain.”

 

“I’ve seen statues of lions. If I remember it right, they lived in packs, too.”

 

“Prides. And yeah, but it was just one male and a bunch of females. He was in charge of ‘em all.”

 

Mason moved the cloth, taking in the swelling on her face. She’d gotten kicked in the cheek. “You should avoid kicks to the face, sweetheart.”

 

“I’ll remember that for my next fight.”

 

The empty syringe of Med-x answered his question. Not that he would blame her, a bit of chems helped after taking some damage, and when facing off against a few angry Disciples, you took damage. “Gage give you the Med-x?” He knew damned well the raider didn’t like chems, and the idea of him drugging her then leaving didn’t sit well.

 

“Hah! He said I couldn’t have any. Too bad he doesn’t know about my stash.”

 

Mason shook his head, unable to not smile. The girl had a mischievous side. Still, drugged up and hurt, he wasn’t about to leave her on her own, not after such a close call. “I think you keep getting hurt just so I can’t have you.”

 

She snorted. “Yep. I avoid sex by getting my ass kicked. You’ve discovered my secret plan.”

 

“So you finally admitting it’s going to happen?”

 

She scooted closer, laying her head on his chest. Mason froze. She was further gone than he’d thought. Still, he wrapped an arm around her. Might as well enjoy it, and she could deal with embarrassment in the morning. Nothing like chems and fights for morning after regrets.

 

“Yeah. I mean, I’m going to play hard to get, but yeah, it’ll happen.” She rubbed her check against him, her breath warming his skin through his shirt. Her voice had gone quiet, sleep starting to overtake her.

 

Fuck, he liked this. Sure, he liked when she snarled and fought, but this wasn’t bad, either.

 

“Go on, she-wolf. Get some sleep.”

 

 

#

 

Nora woke to someone snoring. She frowned.

 

Danse snored, but he always slept far enough away she hardly noticed, and this was coming from against her.

 

She opened her eyes to find Mason laying in the bed, her head on his chest, her leg thrown over his pelvis. Nora leaned back to watch him sleep, for the first time not intimidated by him. Hell, he looked damn near cute. His face paint had smeared, the lines of color muddy, and his hair hung to the side. Snores floated from his lips, his body relaxed, arm slung around her.

 

Nora slid her body over until she was above him, then pressed her lips to his.

 

Mason woke, hands holding her hips tight, a growl escaping, before he returned the kiss. He slid one hand into her hair, gripping until it started to sting. His tongue pressed against her lips until she opened, and he sunk in. He closed his teeth around her lip and pulled before breaking the kiss. “Morning, she-wolf.”

 

“Morning.” Nora went to pull away, but he kept his hand in her hair.

 

“Don’t go shy on me now. That was a hell of a nice way to wake up.” The hand still on her hip pulled her forward, then back, rubbing her against his length.

 

Nora’s eyes widened.

 

“Told you we’d have to get you ready. Don’t worry, I won’t take you this morning.”

 

“Why did you stay the night?”

 

“Disciples already took a shot at you last night. I wasn’t about to let them try again, not while you were hurt and on Med-x.”

 

“Not worried about looking weak by being here overnight?”

 

“Fuck looking weak. Anyone wants to try for my spot, they’re welcome to. If I can’t keep what I claim I don’t deserve to have it. If the Disciples think they can come after you, best thing is a show of force. A few of their people dead is a good start, but showing off your alliances helps, too.” He repeated the movement, this time pushing up against her as well. “Now, you done strategizing? Because I’d rather get you naked, personally.”

 

Nora didn’t get the chance to answer when someone cleared their throat behind her. “Perhaps that could wait, Sentinel Jacobs?”

 

Mason was off the bed, with her tucked behind him, before she could identify the voice. Of course, it wasn’t a voice she’d forget. “Wait! Danse?”

 

“You know him?” Mason kept an arm around Nora, kept her behind him.

 

“Yeah. It’s okay.” Nora stepped out to face the Paladin. “What are you doing here?”

 

“It’s been two weeks since Maxson sent that message. He's heard nothing back.”

 

“Yes, so? Last I checked, I wasn’t a pet. I don’t have to come running just because he whistles.”

 

Danse sighed, and she almost felt bad for him. It wasn’t his fault, he was just following orders. “You knew if he didn’t hear back, he’d send someone.”

 

“And he sends you because he knows I won’t shoot you.”

 

“He’s nothing if not clever.”

 

“You mean manipulative.”

 

“I’m not sure there is a difference. Will you come with me to the Prydwen? He only wants you to report in, then assures you can leave.”

 

“You got a vertibird in front of the park, I’m guessing?”

 

Danse nodded.

 

“Fine. Give me thirty and I’ll meet you there.”

 

#

 

Mason watched the man dressed in power armor disappear. He turned to ask Nora what the fuck was going on.

 

Instead, Nora picked up a glass from the bar and hurled it against the wall. “That cocksucking asshole. I’m going to castrate the fucker.”

 

The outburst drew a laugh from him. The girl didn’t curse much, but when she did, she went all out. “Guess I don’t need to ask how you feel about him.”

 

Nora set her hands on her hips, eyes not meeting Mason’s, surveying the room like planning. “I can’t not go.”

 

“Why not? A few boys in power armor aren’t a problem.”

 

“He’s got a hell of a lot more than a few boys, trust me. No, I have to check in.”

 

“Doesn’t sound like you want to.”

 

“I don’t, but he won’t go back on his word, not after he’s given it. I’ve got to go. It’ll only take a few days.”

 

“You did recommend a ride on a Vertibird, didn’t you?”

 

Nora pressed her lips together. “You don’t have to do that. I don’t want to drag you into the Commonwealth on an errand.”

 

“Fuck that. You’re headed up into enemy territory? Nowhere I’d rather fucking be.”

 

She began to pack a bag, shoving items in without looking at them much. “Alright. Go pack what you need and meet me out front. And don’t say I didn’t warn you, Arthur is a prick. Hell, the whole Brotherhood is.”


	8. Chapter 8

Mason hopped off the Vertibird, trying to keep his legs steady beneath him. Don’t show weakness. No one needed to know he wasn’t a fan of flying. He was a beast, not a fucking bird.

 

“Welcome back aboard, Ma’am.” Another metal-wearing asshole saluted Nora then tossed a glare in Mason’s direction.

 

“They don’t like guests, huh?”

 

Nora smiled over her shoulder, strolling the walkways like they weren’t a hundred fucking feet in the air. “Don’t worry about it. You wouldn’t believe the people I’ve drug up here.”

 

“Worse than me?”

 

“When Arthur tried to get me to wear a dress to dinner one night, I brought a super mutant with me.”

 

“A dress? Something I should know about you and ‘Arthur?’” He filled the name with scorn.

 

“Yeah. You should know he thinks I should fuck him, and I think he should fuck himself. It’s been an ongoing point of contention between the two of us.”

 

They walked inside, and Mason breathed in deep. The ship still rocked side to side, but at least he couldn’t see how far up they were. Just past a ladder, he spotted the sort of arrogance that could only be Elder Arthur Maxson.

 

The man, barely more than a kid, wore a heavy brown battlecoat. A scar crossed over his cheek, and he’d grown a beard, probably to hid his age. Not that it worked, anyone who took a moment would spot the fear and self-aggrandizing that comes from getting power before you earn it.

 

“Sentinel. I’m glad Paladin Danse was able to find you.”

 

“Find me? You knew exactly where I was.”

 

“When you failed to respond to my summons, I feared the worst.”

 

“Don’t pull that with me, Arthur. I won’t play this game with you.”

 

The man pulled his shoulders back and gave Nora a look dripping with anger. “You’ve been gone a while, but soldier, do not forget who you’re addressing.”

 

Most would wilt beneath the glare, and in fact a few bystanders drew back. Not Nora, though. She held the gaze, dared the man to do anything about it.

 

And when Maxson released an annoyed breath and turned his head, she won.

 

“Look, Nora, I was worried. I know you wanted time off, but who knows what could happen to you out there. Brotherhood soldiers are not soldiers of fortune or mercenaries. We work together.”

 

“You know exactly why I left.”

 

Maxson jerked his face away, suddenly looking very much like his young age. “Yes, I know. I’m sorry. It was a. . . poor choice. It won’t happen again.”

 

What had been a poor choice? When exactly had Maxson done to cause Nora to run? Mason had a million questions, but he stayed quiet, near the door. He’d figure it out later.

 

“No, it won’t. I’ve already explained this to you, Arthur. My answer hasn’t changed.”

 

Maxson lifted his gaze to Mason, seeming to notice him for the first time. Or was it just a dominance game? Show he was in charge by ignoring the newcomer? “And who is this?”

 

“Mason, Alpha of the Pack.” Nora introduced him, and he wanted to puff out his chest. Fuck, it sounded good coming from those lips.

 

“Alpha? Of a group of raiders?”

 

“Yeah. You ever wanna come off your pretty little ship, I’ll show you what a bunch of raiders can do.”

 

Maxson took a step forward, but Nora stopped him with a hand. “Don’t. Am I free to go?”

 

“Yes, in the morning. We have no available Vertibirds to return you until then, and I imagine the walk would take longer than that anyway.”

 

“You’re playing games with me again, Arthur. I don’t like games.”

 

“No game. You’re welcome to leave now if you’d like. It just seems a poor idea. If you wait, a Vertibird will take you wherever you want.”

 

“I want one to take me where I want first, then back to Nuka World.”

 

“Have dinner with me, alone, and I’ll agree. You’ll have a vertibird available to you until you return to Nuka World.”  

 

Nora took a step backward, and Mason fought the urge to step forward. She could handle this on her own, he just had to let her. It was pretty damn clear she’d been handling the asshole for a while.

 

She sucked in a deep breath, then nodded. “Fine. Deal.”

 

#

 

Mason stretched his legs out as he sat in the Mess Hall. Paladin Danse sat across from him, pretending to be there as a friend, but Mason knew a guard when he saw one.

 

“I ain’t gonna do anything.”

 

“Trust me, I’m here as much for your protection as ours.”

 

“I’m not exactly shaking from the bunch of soldier boys you’ve got up here.”

 

“Perhaps not, but if anything happens to you, the Sentinel would be. . . unhappy.” Danse’s voice caught, and Mason chuckled. Yeah, the girl made people nervous. “Which leads me to wonder what your intentions with her are.”

 

“What are you, her brother?”

 

“No. She has no family, not anymore.”

 

“Anymore? She got a past you want to fill me in on?”

 

Danse frowned. “You don’t know? With how I found the two of you, I’d expected you to be more informed. She has never been the type to jump into bed with strangers. If you don’t know, I’ll leave it to her to tell you. You’re avoiding my question, however.”

 

“Because it ain’t your business. If you want to know, go ask her.”

 

“Understand this, that woman has friends. If you plan to betray her, you’ll find the Commonwealth a very small place.”

 

Mason offered a mock salute. “Understood, soldier boy.”

 

#

 

Nora sat across from Arthur, poking at the food on her plate. He’d removed his coat, sitting in just jeans and a shirt, looking so damned casual.

 

And so damned young.

 

As for Nora, she was in the dress he’d requested. For use of a Vertibird, she’d wear the stupid thing.

 

“It’s good to see you.”

 

“Well, it’s not like you gave me a choice.”

 

He sighed and rubbed his fingers against his eyes. “Well, I didn’t know if you’d return any other way.”

 

“People run for a reason, Arthur.”

 

“I know, and I am not sure how many times I can apologize. I don’t know how else to say I am sorry.”

 

Nora took a sip of the water, ignoring the beer he’d set in front of her. “I know. I’m not angry, but I need space. I can’t do this with you anymore.”

 

“Why not? I’m not asking for anything but a chance.”

 

“There is no chance. What you want, I can’t give you.”

 

“How do you know when you’ve never even tried.”

 

“You’re a kid, Arthur. A kid who see’s a toy he wants and had a hissy fit when he can’t have it. You don’t really want me, you don’t even know me, never bothered to get to know me. You see pre-war genetics and a reputation that will look good on your family line, that’s it.”

 

“I am not a kid.” Arthur stood and slammed a fist down on the table. “I’ve done what no one else before could have done. I’ve pulled together the Brotherhood, set it on a course, destroyed the Institute, saved the Commonwealth. Do not call me a kid.”

 

Nora stood, leaning over the table toward Arthur. “You are a child and this shows it. You can’t have everything you want and you’ve got to learn how to deal with being told no.”

 

He reached out and wrapped his fingers in her hair, holding her still. “I am Elder Arthur Maxson, the last of the Maxson line. People don’t tell me no.”

 

“No.”

 

Arthur moved around the table, closing his other hand around her arm. Nora refused to wince, to let in on how it hurt. This was Arthur, though. A man who thought the world owed him everything, someone who was so damned sure he’d get anything he wanted. When he saw it slipping away, he lashed out.

 

He’d lashed out before she’d run, and he was lashing out again.

 

“You will give in.”

 

“Remember the last time you tried to force me? How long did it take Cade to get that shoulder working again? Had to been a least a week. Don’t make me do that again.”

 

He leaned in to kiss her, but Nora had expected it. She came forward and smacked her forehead into his nose. Arthur yanked back, releasing her.

 

He didn’t yell, no, his pride meant more to him than anything else. His hands cupped his nose, blood leaking through his fingers.

 

“You want to go another round, Arthur, or you want to call it a night?”

 

“This isn’t over.”

 

“Yeah, it is.” Nora took a step back and called over her shoulder without removing her eyes. “Soldier! Elder Maxson needs to go to see Cade. I lost my balance and elbowed him when he went to help me.”

 

Arthur's eyes narrowed as the other soldier rushed in. “Until tomorrow,” he said.

 

“Until tomorrow.”


	9. Chapter 9

Nora didn’t make it fully into the room before Mason was on her. He shoved her backward, setting her ass on the desk before claiming her mouth. His hands slid behind her neck, holding her still, not that he thought she’d try to get away.

 

He pulled back, a low growl. “You smell like him.” Leather and bourbon. He’d caught a whiff from the meeting, noted it. Smelled like a man who never worked, who never fought. Now leather and bourbon covered her.

 

“So? Does that bother you?”

 

He smiled, kneeling in front of her. “Not really. You’re still too wound up to have had much fun. What’s wrong, he ain’t any good? Not that it surprises me, the self-important prick probably has no idea what to do with a woman.” He set his hands thighs and spread them. “Been wanting to do this since that night when you look so fucking interested watching those two go at. Never seen such a pretty shade of red as your cheeks. You ever had anyone do this, she-wolf? Because you looked damn surprised.”

 

She shook her head.

 

He stopped, surprised. He’d been baiting her, not really expecting that answer. “Fuck. Why not?”

 

“It was a long time ago, things were different. It wasn’t something people did; It wasn’t appropriate.”

 

“Well, I love inappropriate. You want me to stop? Tell me know, because once I get a taste I’m not stopping for shit.”

 

She shook her head. “Don’t stop, please.”

 

He slid his hands up the hem of her dress, then tore the waist of her panties, discarding them over his shoulder. Fuck, it was the first good look he’d gotten of her. Every other time she’d been mostly dressed, too close to get a look at anything. Now he had her on display for him. He wasn’t the type to get on his knees for anyone, but he’d beg if that’s what it took to get here.

 

Mason leaned in and swiped his tongue up her slit. She gasped and pulled back, but he raised one hand to her chest and shoved her back against the wall, pinning, keeping her still for another lick. He couldn’t think straight, didn’t want anything but more of her, more of this. His other hand pressed a finger into her, and when she moved again, he growled. “Stay still.” The words muffled against her core.

 

He pumped that finger into her, quickly adding a second. She moaned, but took him easier than last time, adjusted faster, not that he gave her much time. He angled his fingers up, looking for the right spot. As soon as he touched it, she twisted, would have leapt away if not for where he held her still. He bit her thigh. “Trust me, she-wolf.” He latched his mouth onto her clit, keeping her still even as she struggled.

 

Her hand slid into his hair, holding him as he devoured her. One last suck on her clit and she came apart, but he kept at her, dragging out each wave until she collapsed back against the wall, panting.

 

He nipped her hip as he stood up, then pulled her into a kiss.

 

A knock on the door had him growling. He wanted to kill whoever dared interrupt them, because right then he wanted to drag her to the bed and fuck her. He’d said he’d wait, but waiting sounded like a piss poor idea right then. He could go slow and still be inside her that night. And she’d let him. He knew it in the way she arched into his body, the way she’d relaxed for two fingers. She trusted him, and she’d let him have her.

 

But not if the fuckwits at the door kept bothering them.

 

“Sentential Jacobs, Elder Maxson needs to see you.”

 

“He can fuck himself,” Nora muttered.

 

“What was that?”

 

She took a deep breath. “Just a minute.”

 

“Can’t we just ignore them?” Mason licked across her neck. “I promise I can make you forget all about them.”

 

“No. First is a knock, next they’ll just walk in and haul me out.”

 

Mason sighed and took a step back. His eyes caught on her arm, on red finger marks there, already bruising.

 

He stared down at his hand. He hadn’t grabbed her arm, had he? He’d been rough, he tended to be, but he hadn’t touched her arm, hadn’t bruised her.

 

“It wasn’t you.” Nora’s voice came out quiet. He didn’t like it, the way her shoulders hunched, the way she drew into herself.

 

“Arthur?”

 

She flinched at his voice. He didn’t even try to gentle it. Getting hurt in a fight was one fucking thing, that you got used to in his world. Hurting someone like this, that was another thing entirely. “Yeah. Arthur has a temper when he hears no. That’s why I left, why I didn’t want to come back.”

 

“That's what he was sorry for last time?”

 

She nodded. “Before I left, he decided one night, after a few beers that, that coming into my quarters and persuading me was a good idea. Of course, he doesn't understand the difference between persuasion and force. He left that night with a broken collarbone and a dislocated shoulder, and I left the next morning.”

 

“Sounds too easy for the son of a bitch.”

 

“Arthur is a fool, a child who has always been given too much. I’ve already handled this, though. Just, don’t do anything, please? We need to get out of here and you killing the Elder isn’t going to get us out of here.” Nora sighed before reaching for her clothing.

 

“Are you coming, Ma’am?”

 

Mason couldn’t kill Maxson, but what about the moron behind the door?

 

Nora handled it by a one finger salute through the door. “Once I put on some normal clothing like an adult, sure. Until then, you and Lord Maxson can wait.”

 

#

 

Nora stood before Arthur and tried to ignore the damage to his face. The bridge of his nose had swollen, black and blue spanning across it and filling in the space around his eyes. Yeah, she’d gotten him good, and she almost felt bad.

 

The asshole deserved it, but she could never shake the guilt. He was what he’d been made: impulsive, fragile-ego, terrified of failure. When he showed up damaged because of her, it stung, even if deserved it and worse.

 

Mason took one look at the man’s face and laughed, loud and not seeming to want to quiet it for anything. Hell, a glare had him laughing harder. At least he didn’t say a word.

 

Nora tried to keep her voice even. “You asked to see me?”

 

Arthur glared, but nodded. “A Vertibird returned early. You’re welcome to leave immediately.”

 

Of course it had. He wouldn’t try again, not so soon, so he’d rather get her the hell off his ship.

 

“Thank you.”

 

“There is one more thing.”

 

Nora set her hands on her hips and sighed. “There always is with you, Arthur.”

 

His shoulders twitched, and she smiled. He hated when she called him Arthur, the way it came out like a mother scolding a child, and that was the exact reason she did it.

 

“You will have a proper escort this time. A Brotherhood soldier of your rank has no business in a raider camp without proper protection.”

 

“You can’t put brotherhood soldiers in Nuka World. You’ll start a war.”

 

“They will not engage, only be there to provide security. Don’t think I didn’t notice the wounds on you, the cuts and bruises from that place. It is not safe there, and I do not intend to lose you.” Of course not. Even after this, Arthur saw her as he always had, a prize that was his by right.

 

“Don’t become my enemy, Arthur. When you want to play this game with me, when you sit there and think you can take me, I want you to remember back to the brilliant flash of light that filled the sky when the Institute burned. I want you to remember the bodies across the Railroad HQ. And then I want you to ask yourself if you really want me as an enemy.”

 

He swallowed, hard, like each of those things ran through his head. He leaned in, lowering his voice, so it wouldn’t carry. “I am not your enemy, Nora. They are not there as a threat. I don’t want to see you hurt; I want to protect you. I’m trying to give you space and time, so give me this. Meet me half-way. Show me we can’t work together. It is not such a burden I ask from you.”

 

He wouldn’t back down. This was a line in the sand between them, like so many things. Would she start a war and direct conflict with him over a few brotherhood soldiers?

 

No, she wouldn’t, and he knew it.

 

“Make sure they know what a short leash they’re on.”


	10. Chapter 10

Mason eyed Sanctuary. He’d expected a few shacks, some grimy settlers, not much else. Hell, he expected a place he’d have to place men to keep it from getting wiped out.

 

The place before him had none of that.

 

Tall walls surrounded the settlement, topped with laser turrets. Generators hummed along, powering each building. Farms sat to the east in cleared spaces, and shops near the front gate. Fuck, he’d have thought twice about attacking this place if he’d happened upon it on his own. It held all the marks of a brilliant planner, with no obvious weaknesses.  

 

“Nora!” A woman ran out of the gates, red coat and black hair, and threw herself at Nora.

 

“Piper.” Nora wrapped her arms around the girl and they hugged tight. “I’m glad you’re here. I was afraid I’d miss you. How’s Nat?”

 

“Getting into trouble.”

 

“Well, we couldn’t expect anything different, could we? It’s a family problem. Got to be better here than Diamond City, though.”

 

Piper pulled away, sending Mason a look that could make one of the Pack mutts think twice. “Who is this?”

 

Mason stuck his hand out, wanting for once to play nice. This place was important to Nora, and he didn’t want to fuck it up or embarrass her. The Brotherhood was one thing, she hated them. This seemed to be home for her. “Name’s Mason.”

 

Piper looked down at his hand and crossed her arms. “Well, Mason, what exactly are you doing here? How does Nora know you? Come on, let’s hear the story.”

 

He got the sense she’d keep going, but Nora shoved her shoulder. “This isn’t an interview, Pipes. Give him a break, okay?”

 

Piper glared, but another shove got her moving back through the gates.

 

Mason walked up beside Nora and waited until they were alone. “She a raider in a past life?”

 

Nora laughed and slid her arm around his. “Worse. She’s a reporter.”

 

He expected her to pull away after the joke, but she didn’t. Nuka World was one thing, but here? Here, he expected her to downplay anything between them, to keep him at an arm’s length. He wouldn’t blame her for it, either. You didn’t shit where you ate.

 

She didn’t do that, though. Her side pressed against his, fingers wrapped around his bicep. They walked in, and she pointed things out, offered insight. She waved at anyone they passed, introduced him like he mattered. “Over there is the community house. We let people passing through stay there, or others when they first get here before rooms are assigned.”

 

“We need to grab beds?”

 

Nora laughed and bumped into him. “Really? I’ve got my own place, thank you very much.”

 

“You something important here?”

 

“Something like that. Come on, I’ve got to check in.”

 

Three hours later, they sat at the Northern edge of town. Mason had learned a number of things. First, she’d created the fucking place, and what she’d told him about herself and the things she’d done was a drop in a large damned bucket. The woman had single-handedly reshaped the Commonwealth.

 

“What the fuck are you doing in Nuka World?”

 

Nora pulled back, face hardening.

 

“I don’t mean it like that. I’m sorry. It’s just, fuck, Boss. You’ve done a hell of a lot of shit out here. You could retire, live like a fucking king. With this place, with what I’ve seen, you ain’t needing the caps. What are you doing fighting with gangs and fucking with us?”

 

Nora sighed, then stood. “You want to know why? Come on, let me show you something.”

 

Mason followed Nora up the hill behind Sanctuary, then into an old Military base. She stepped onto a metal plate, and waved him over. When Mason stood behind her, she hit a button and they started to descend.

 

 

#

 

Nora took a deep breath as the vault closed in around her. She hadn’t come back since she’d left, hadn’t brought anyone down there. The last time she’d done this, the world had just ended.

 

Her pulse raced, but she drew her hands into fists, told herself to get a hold of herself.

 

“You okay?”

 

No. Fuck, no, she wasn’t. She shook. The elevator reached the bottom, and the fencing lifted. Her ribs had turned to stone, refused to move. She nodded, stumbling out of the elevator.

 

Mason said more, but she didn’t hear it. It washed past her like ocean waves as she rushed for the stairs, then through the vault door.

 

Something stopped her, hauled her back. She came face to face with Mason, his mouth moving, talking, but she couldn’t hear, couldn’t think. Her chest hurt, her head beneath water.

 

“Fuck, Nora, Breathe!” Those words came through just before something hit her.

 

He’d slapped her.

 

Nora stumbled back, the sting enough to wake her up. Her lungs lumbered back to working, turned away from him, hands gripping the railing as her knees give out. “Sorry,” she forced through her throat. She sat, leaning her back against the railing.

 

Mason knelt in front of her. “Fucking hell, what was that?”

 

Nora slid her eyes closed. Mason’s hands closed on her thighs, not sexual, just a comfort. They grounded her. She wasn’t stuck here. She hadn’t just woken up. She wasn’t alone. Nora wasn’t the same woman who had walked in here and she wasn’t the same one who had walked out. She’d grown, changed.

 

“Sorry about hitting you.” His fingers grazed her cheek. “Never hit a girl like that, but I didn’t know what else to do. You were turning blue, and while I think blue suits you, doesn’t do good things for your skin.”

 

“It’s alright. Thanks. I, well, I didn’t expect that.”

 

“How longs it been since you came down here?”

 

“Hell, I don’t know. A long time.”

 

“I figured you were from a vault. Not many others wear around those suits. This where you lived?”

 

Nora opened her eyes, glad the world had stopped spinning. “No. I lived in down there, in Sanctuary, just before the war.”

 

Mason gave her the same look she’d gotten each time she’d admitted that, something that said they figured she’d hit the chems too hard. “Pre-war?”

 

“Yeah. This vault was for cryofreezing, not that I knew it at the time. So I went to sleep the day the bombs fell, and woke up in this world.”

 

“Doesn’t explain why you’re in Nuka World. Fuck, if that was my story, I’d want some peace even more.”

 

Nora nodded. “You’re right. Come on, there’s more.”

 

Mason hopped to his feet and helped her up. He slid an arm around her waist as she went further into the vault. With Mason beside her, though, she managed. She walked, leaned into his side, used his strength. Why hadn’t she come here sooner?

 

Because it hurt. Each step dug in things she’d accepted but never faced.

 

They stopped in front of a tube. Mason looked at the man, then back at Nora. He said nothing, leaned in, and read the cryotube.

 

“Nate Jacobs?”

 

Nora nodded, wrapping her arms around her waist. “My husband.”

 

“That’s a bullet wound in his chest.”

 

Nora nodded and sat. “Yeah. It’s a long story. You sure you want to hear it?”

 

Mason sat beside her and draped an arm over her shoulders. “Fuck, yeah, I want to hear it.”

 

An hour later and Nora sat, cross legged, sometime during the story having shifted so she leaned against Mason. Pouring out the story felt like draining a wound. She’d given bits and pieces to others, though many had lived through it with her. Nick when he’d killed Kellogg with her, Danse when he’d helped her blow up the Institute. They knew parts of it without her having had to explain it. “So you asked me why I’m at Nuka World. The only answer I have is that, I’m tired of living for my past. I destroyed the Institute because of the path I took when finding my son. I did all this because of my old life.”

 

Nora took a deep breath, and said the thing she hated to say. “Nuka World is a fresh start, it is something for me and no one else. I’m not there to avenge my husband or find my son. I can do anything I want for the first time since waking up. I’m tired of living for people who are dead.”

 

 

#

 

Mason followed Nora into the house. He’d expected a little shack, but that wasn’t what she had. She had a fucking beautiful two-bedroom place in the middle of town.

 

“This is all yours?”

 

She shrugged and tossed her jacket on the couch. “Yeah. It was mine before the war, so I called dibs on it when I started rebuilding.”

 

“You know this settlement is fucking amazing, yeah? And this coming from someone who has set up a few camps in his life.”

 

She laughed, flipping on a light. “It’s a good place. Does this make you trust me a little more? Maybe makes you think I can handle getting some raiders in line and organized into a working group?”

 

Mason reached out and took her by the hips. He pulled her up against him. “Oh, I trusted you the second you got that mutt crouching at your feet, she-wolf. All of this just confirms it.”

 

Fuck, it was true. If she could create this place out of nothing, with the help of farmers and settler, she could make anything from a group of raiders.

 

He leaned in to kiss her, but she pulled away.

 

“Not in the mood?” He could get that; they had just spent an hour going over the worst parts of her life in front of the body of her dead husband. That tended to kill a girl’s sex drive.

 

“I was just thinking of something a little different.” She slid down to her knees, setting her hands on his thighs. “Is this okay?”

 

Mason laughed at the stupid question. “Come on, boss. I’ve got the prettiest girl on her knees in front of me. How could that not be okay?” He ran his hand through her hair, smiling at the way it curled around his fingers.

 

She took a deep breath, like she was nervous, and undid his pants. Her fingers trembled. He pulled on her hair until she looked up at him. “You ain’t gotta do this, sweetheart.”

 

“I want to.”

 

“You want to move into the bedroom? You’re shaking like a rabbit. Might feel better without me towering above you.”

 

She slid his pants down blind, eyes still locked on him. “I like you like this. I like that you’re bigger than I am. The first time I saw you, that’s what I remember.” Her hand wrapped around his length. “I’ve dealt with men I can show up, men I can outmaneuver. I like that I can’t move you.”

 

He groaned, this the first time she’d touched him. All his hunting had been slow coaxing, and he’d had to take care of himself. Not that he minded waiting, but fuck, this reminded him what he’d been wanting. “I knew you had a dangerous steak in you,” he said, still meeting her gaze.

 

She tried to look down, but he tightened the grip.

 

“Keep your eyes on me, she-wolf. I like when you look at me.”

 

“How can I. . .” Red colored her cheeks when she couldn’t manage to say it. Fuck, he liked that shy side to her, the one that wanted but hated to admit it.  

 

“I’m sure you can figure it out. You’re nothing if not resourceful.”

 

Nora snorted, something that seemed out of place amidst her delicate features. She stroked her hand along his cock, slow, eyes locked on him. He liked when she listened, maybe because she listened so damned rarely.

 

Her tongue darted out, licking over the head of his cock. Mason kept still, the hardest thing he’d ever had to do, when everything in him wanted to push his hips forward, to slide himself between those perfect lips of hers.

 

But she’d made a fucking leap here, taking the initiative, and he wasn’t about to push her further. Push people too far, they snap back, and he didn’t want his she-wolf snapping near his goods.

 

She wrapped her tongue around his cock before feeding it past her lips. The warmth of her mouth surrounded him, and he had to fight to keep his eyes open, to maintain eye contact.

 

The sight was almost enough to have him coming. Her lips, the ones usually rambling and joking, were stretched around him as she slid him further into her mouth. She didn’t take him deep, one hand wrapped around the base of his cock, the other resting on his thigh to steady her. She rubbed her tongue against the bottom of his cock, teasing him, driving him up a fucking wall.

 

Hell, he wasn’t known for his control; there was a damned good reason he associated with animals, but he tightened his grip in her hair and forced himself to stay still.

 

She didn’t look away, kept her gaze on him.

 

“Fuck, your mouth feels good. You have any idea how many times I imagined this? Every time you smart off to me, every time you slide that smirk across those lips, I wanted to do this. I’m close, she-wolf. You want me to pull out?”

 

Her head jerked, a tiny shake to say no. He growled then, the last bit of control snapping. He pushed his hips forward, not deep enough to gag her, not as deep as he wanted to go, but enough movement to help. He leaned forward as she bent back, and it was so damned close to fucking her. Her eyes, all wide and innocent and his stared up at him, and he came.

 

He shuddered and pulled out. Wetness strung between her lips to his cock, and he reached down, using a thumb to wipe her lip before he kissed her.

 

“Was that okay?” She undid him with that. The people he’d been with over the years, they bit and scratched and didn’t give a fuck about anything else. You had to watch ‘em, keep ‘em in front of you, because they damned well might stab you if they got a chance. Not his she-wolf, though. She was sweet, snarled only when she needed to.

 

“Fucking perfect.”

 

Damnit, he was way in over his head with her.

 


	11. Chapter 11

 Nora tried to ignore Gage's poor attitude, though he refused to make it easy. 

“This ain’t smart, Boss.” Gage crossed his arms as he stared out of the window at the squad of Brotherhood soldiers. Six in total had come to Nuka World, with two more guarding the Vertibird outside the gates. They all wore power armor, all lumbered about the place without speaking to anyone. At least they hated raiders less than they hated ghouls and synths. One stayed with Nora full time, the others securing her quarters downstairs. 

 

“Yeah, I know it. I don’t have a lot of choices in it.”

 

“You should have waited for me to come with you instead of running off without a word.”

 

“You think you could have stopped this? It wouldn’t have made a difference. Arthur is sure I’m in trouble here, and he’ll do whatever it takes to get what he wants. We’re just going to have to put up with them as long as they’re here, okay? I know they aren’t comforting, but they’re well trained. They won’t do anything.”

 

Gage shook his head. He’d been angry since she’d returned, sulking and glaring and storming around. Hell, the way he slammed closed a drawer reminded her of what she’d do at fifteen when angry at her mother.

 

“You going to tell me what your real problem is or should we beat around the bush a while longer?”

 

“Why’d you take Mason with you?”

 

Nora sighed, not surprised. Gage and Mason got along about as well as brotherhood and synth. “Mason was here when they showed up. I didn’t plan on taking anyone, but he doesn’t exactly take no for an answer.”

 

“He was here? Meaning he spent the night up here with you?”

 

“Yeah, he spent the night. I wasn’t aware I need to start running all my choices by you.”

 

“Look, I’ve ignored this so far.”

 

“Really? Because you’ve had a lot to say as far as I recall.”

 

Gage set a hand on Nora’s back and pushed her over to the stools by the bar. “Well, sit and actually listen this time, okay?”

 

“Fine.” She sat, leaning back against the bar. “Go ahead.”

 

“Mason is trouble. I can respect wanting a good fuck, Boss. That’s part of our life. No harm in that. But you aren’t catching and releasing here, you’re holding onto him. You’re wanting something from him you ain’t gonna get, something that’s gonna get you killed. This isn’t the Commonwealth, and you’re gonna be in for a shock if you think he’s like the men you grew used to out there.”

 

“Is that it?”

 

He grabbed her face, forcing her to look at him. “No, that isn’t it. Hell, you turned down William, and that boy is pretty enough I’d think twice before turning him down. Is he just not your type? You into something else?” He ran his thumb over her bottom lip. “Maybe big, rough raiders?”

 

“You don’t know anything.”

 

“I know that you’re hoping like hell that Mason is something special. You’re thinking he see’s you as something special. Boss, he’s using you like everyone else.”

 

“You’re wrong. He’s not like that.”

 

“You think? Just wait. Mason wants power, and if he thinks you’re in the way of that power, you’re gonna see a side of him that’ll surprise you. When you see that, when you realize he is just as bad as all the others out here, well, you know where to find me, Boss.”

 

#

 

Securing Dry Rock Gulch took the whole day, and by the end of it Nora, Gage, and the soldier who refused to leave her alone had bloodworm entrails covering them. They stood by the flagpole and Gage waited.

 

“Send up the Disciples flag.”

 

Gage hesitated. “You think? After they attacked you? Maybe you should give it to the Operators to prove a point.”

 

Nora shook her head. “Have to keep the peace. Giving another park to the Operator’s would be an insult, and there’s no way the Disciples wouldn’t see it that way. I don’t know that it was Nisha, and I can’t blame her for what a few of her boys do. Besides, with all the blood and guts around here, seems like a place they’d feel right at home.”

 

The soldier picked a piece of bloodworm off his armor and dropped it to the dirt. “I’m not sure this place was worth the effort.”

 

“Well, you’re welcome to head back to the Prydwen.”

 

“I would if I could. Trust me, hanging out in a park full of raiders is not my idea of a good time. This is worse than the time Maxson assigned me to a patrol guarding the sewer with ghoul bodies in it.”

 

“How did you land such an illustrious assignment?”

 

“I punched a Knight who mouthed off to me.”

 

Nora crossed her arms, watching the soldier. “Oh yeah? Who was it?”

 

“Knight Rhys.”

 

 Nora laughed, the answer so unexpected she grabbed the wall of area to stay upright. “Oh, hell, I wish I could have seen that. Just for that, you’ve nabbed bodyguard status. Means you have to follow me around on more of these outings, but you get to crash on my couch instead of on a sleeping bag downstairs. What’s your name?”

 

“Knight Caleb.”

 

She tried to get her laughter under control, but every time she thought about this soldier punching Rhys in the face, it made her laugh harder. “Alright, Caleb, come on. It’s time to head back for the night.”

 

#

 

Mason lounged in the Backstage, feet up on a table as he drank. Getting out had been a nice escape, but coming back always made him appreciate home. Might not have the amenities he’d seen, but he understood people here, and he loved being on top.

 

He hadn’t seen Nora since they’d gotten back, four days before. She’d run her errands, taken another park, given it to the Disciples. Not that he minded, he didn’t want Dry Rock Gulch. Bloodworms turned his stomach.

 

Still, he missed her. He’d almost gone to visit, but figured he’d give her space. Not to mention she now had an escort in power armor at all times, and just seeing that asswipe made him want to snarl. It reminded him of the Elder, and the Elder was a problem Mason wanted to fix in as bloody a way as possible.  

 

The door to the Backstage slammed as Nora stormed in, her face nothing but anger. A smarter man would have turned tail and run, but Mason found only excitement in the face of whatever had pissed her off. He liked her worked up and snapping. “Well, she-wolf, to what do we owe this honor?”

 

She didn’t slow, and didn’t give him time to avoid the sucked punch she threw into his jaw.

 

He spat blood on the floor, narrowing his eyes. “Everyone, out.” The words growled out, low, dangerous, daring anyone to stay.

 

No one took him up on the dare. They scurried out as fast as they could until only he and Nora remained.

 

“You want to tell me the fuck that little show was about? Because let me tell you, you just made my life a hell of a lot more difficult. Last thing you want is a dominance struggle inside the Pack, but with that little stunt, you’ve guaranteed someone’s gonna challenge me. So, what was worth that?”

 

“How could you?”

 

“I need more details, sweetheart. I got no clue what you’re talking about. All I know is you came barreling into my territory and punched me. I suggest you start making more sense. I enjoy when my she-wolf snarls, but I’d like to know why she’s baring those fangs at me, of all people.”

 

She met his gaze. Fuck, her eyes were red. She’d been crying. “I know you sent men to attack Sanctuary.”

 


	12. Chapter 12

 

Nora fought the tears back. She’d already cried when the messenger had brought her word, had thrown things. How could Mason have betrayed her like this?

 

No one else knew what that place meant to her, no one but Mason. Even if Nisha wanted to hurt her, she wouldn’t know to strike there. Hell, no one but the trader who had passed notes, Gage, and Mason knew she came from there at all, and of them only Mason knew exactly how important it was.

 

“What are you talking about?” He spoke slow, like he didn’t have a clue what she spoke of.

 

“Don’t lie to me. I know everything.” She threw the gazelle mask that had been on one of the attackers at him. It struck his chest, then clattered to the floor as he made no attempt to catch it. It laid on the ground, staring up like a corpse with dead eyes. “Eight people dressed in masks like this attacked Sanctuary. They killed one settler before the turrets and guards could kill them. A few others were wounded, including Piper. They shot Piper in the shoulder.” The name stuck in her throat. This was all her fault. If she’d never brought Mason there, he’d never have known where to strike, would never have been able to do this.

 

What if Piper had been killed? How could she have ever faced Nat to apologize? It was all fun and games until she threatened her friends, threatened the people who had been there for her since she’d woken up.

 

“I didn’t do this, Nora. You should know me better than that.”

 

“Don’t you recognize that mask? Come on, there’s only one group who dresses like that!” She cracked open then, grasping the back of a chair to stay upright. “How could I have trusted you? How could I have been so stupid?” She wrapped her fingers in her hair for a moment, frustration a living, breathing thing inside of her. “How do you explain this?”

 

He growled, picking up the mask and throwing it against a wall. “I explain as a fucking trick. What better way to put a wedge between us than make you doubt me?”

 

“Who would want to do that?”

 

“How about any of the other gangs. You know as well as I do that anything between us threatens them. I wouldn’t put it past either of them to do something like this, to try to get us fighting so they could earn extra benefits.”

 

Nora wanted to believe him, she wanted to believe she had someone she could trust, that she could believe in him, but it felt like believing in fairy tales. It felt like when her mother read her stories about a princess who is rescued by a prince. That didn’t happen in real life. In real life people screw you over. “No one else knew about Sanctuary.”

 

“If you think you have secrets like that in a place like this, you’re not thinking straight. I may be the only one who went there, but trust me, the second you landed your pretty ass here, everyone started looking into you. No way they didn’t figure out where you came from. What would I gain from attacking Sanctuary, anyway?”

 

She tried, but couldn’t come up with an answer.

 

“Exactly. Nothing. Even if I was using you, how would pissing you off help me? Think about it, she-wolf, you’re smarter than this.”

 

 

#

 

Mason watched her pace. Damn, she looked like her name sake, like a wolf prowling the cages, waiting for a target.

 

He understood that feeling. He wanted to rip apart whoever had set him up. If he’d done it he would have taken credit, but for someone to try to think they could get the better of him? Fuck, he wanted to tear ‘em to pieces.

 

Who was it? Nisha? Mags? Either was vicious enough. Mags was a hell of a lot more likely, though. Nisha didn’t tend to use ruses, she preferred straight bloodshed. Mags was the mastermind of the bunch, the treacherous one.

 

But the gangs appeared happy, at least as happy as bloodthirsty criminals got. Each had a park, Nora had made sure to give them the ones they wanted. They had a good thing going, there, no reason to rebel. First the Disciples attacked Nora, now this? They had no reason to act then, no reason to attack Nora and upset the balance.

 

So who would gain from it?

 

“If you didn’t do it, who did?”

 

“I have no idea. I’m sorry about your people, but you need to get that this is bigger than that. You got someone trying to take apart your bonds with me. If it doesn’t work, they’re gonna try again another way.”

 

She stopped, took a few breaths, then met his gaze. Her lips turned down. “I’m sorry I hit you.”

 

“You don’t get into relationships with she-wolves without expecting to bleed for ‘em now and then. Don’t worry about it.”

 

She took a tiny step backward. “A relationship? Is that what this is?”

 

“Fuck if I know. Closest thing to a relationship I’ve had in a long damned time, though. I know I like you. I know I want to see more of you.” He walked toward her, loving the way she backed away, the way she watched him like she couldn’t quite trust him. “I know that if I saw another man touching you, I’d tear him to bits for it. Guess that all means a relationship.” He backed her up until she hit a wall, where he invaded her personal space. “What do you think?”

 

“I think you’re dangerous.”

 

“Yeah, I am. What else?”

 

“I think this is a mistake.”

 

“The best fucking things in life are mistakes, she-wolf. What else? Come on, be honest.”

 

“I think I miss you when I’m not with you, and I know all the reasons you’re bad for me, and I don’t think I care.”

 

He grinned and rewarded her answer with a kiss. “You know what I think?”

 

“What?” Damn, he loved the way she asked it, full of lust and worry all wrapped together.

 

“I think it’s a good fucking thing I scared everyone out already, because I’m about to strip your pretty ass out of that vaultsuit. I’ve already seen your snarl tonight, think I can get you to purr?”


	13. Chapter 13

 

Nora woke the next morning with Mason’s arm around her. The Backstage was still empty.

 

It seemed Mason’s snarling could keep the Pack away for a long time. She laughed, snuggling back into the warmth Mason’s arms.

 

She wasn’t sure she trusted him. How could she? He was, at the end of the day, a raider. Still, he’d made sense. He wasn’t randomly violent like Nisha and the Disciples, so why would he attack Sanctuary? What would he gain from it?

 

Maybe the point hadn’t been to kill, but to capture? Take a friend hostage and blackmail her? She just didn’t know, and that ate away at her. She wanted to believe him, but she couldn’t.

 

He’d told her that first night that she couldn’t trust him, and she couldn’t shake the feeling he’d been right.

 

His arm tightened around her waist, pulling her tighter against him, and against his erection.

 

They hadn’t had sex the night before, mostly because Nora had chickened out. Between the attack on Sanctuary and her fight with Mason, she wasn’t willing to leap in with both feet just yet.

 

He hadn’t pushed her, and they still enjoyed themselves through the night.

 

Nora blushed as she pulled his arm off. He closed a hand around her arm and yanked her back. “Don’t go. Let’s sleep a little longer.”

 

“I can’t. I supposedly run this mess we call a Park.”

 

He smiled. “It’s call delegation, she-wolf. Stay in bed, I promise you’ll be glad you did.”

 

Nora gave him one kiss as a consolation prize before crawling out of the bed. “If I don’t go, the escort I ditched last night will start knocking on doors. I’ll see you later.”

 

He mumbled a goodbye before rolling over and falling back asleep.

 

Outside the door, Caleb stood, face annoyed. “The whole point of a bodyguard is to not ditch them.”

 

“Trust me, my body was plenty guarded last night.”

 

Caleb wore annoyance the way Danse did, like he couldn’t quite believe he had to put up with it. “Do you think this is smart? Getting involved with a raider like this?”

 

“What I think is that it really isn’t any of your business who I get involved with. Between you and Gage, everyone is really worried about my love life.”

 

Caleb grabbed her arm to stop her, then pulled her around a corner so they were alone. “Look, I don’t care what you do because I’m jealous or any of that. It isn’t a secret Elder Maxson has plans for you. I know you’re fighting it, but he gets what he wants eventually, the Maxson’s always have. Getting involved with Mason, or anyone else, it just going to hurt you more. It’s going to give him leverage to use against you, and then it’ll break your heart when you have to give it up. I’ve gotten to know you a bit here, and you’re a good person. I don’t want to see you hurt any more than you have to be.”

 

She wanted to scream at Caleb, to tell him he didn’t know anything, but she couldn’t. He was right. She’d run away because she knew Arthur would win eventually. This was just a delaying tactic, a way to doing something for her before she had to give into the inevitable. Everything with Mason would end.

 

Maybe it would end because he betrayed her, maybe it would end because they realized they were a terrible match, or maybe it would end because she had to return to Arthur. Whatever it was, it would hurt like hell.

 

Whatever her expression said had Caleb sighing. He tossed an arm around her shoulder and started them walking.

 

“Come on, Jacobs. Let’s go shoot some stuff. Killing things always cheers you up.”

 

#

 

Mason drug himself from bed hours later. He hadn’t wanted to get out of bed, but the Pack needed an alpha, and he’d spent too much time away already.

 

The sun was mid-sky by the time he sat himself in his chair on the stage. Problems were brought to him, one after another. Nothing big, lots of ‘em shit they could deal with on their own.

 

But that was part of being Alpha, the part people beneath him didn’t see. It wasn’t just being on top, or staying on top, it was protecting those under you. Alpha’s had to keep the weaker ones safe, keep the Pack moving forward. It was a weight pups didn’t see when nipping at the Alpha’s heels.

 

He got up, stretching his legs. Maybe he’d visit Nora that night, sneak into her room. She’d said no last night, but he’d bet she’d say yes soon. Not that he minded her refusals, it just prolonged the hunt, made him that much more desperate to catch her.

 

“He’s pussy whipped,” came the laugh of a Pack member who hadn’t spotted him. “You seen him tagging around that bitch like a fucking puppy?”

 

Mason clicked his tongue then released a laugh that would have made a Yao Guai think twice about attacking. “Anyone I know?”

 

The other Pack members who sat there slunk off, leaving the one who’d been mouthing off alone. Smart men.

 

But this one? He was an idiot. A new member, not more than two weeks in and far too full of himself. He puffed out his chest and stood, facing Mason. “I seen you, we’ve all seen you. We’re raiders, we don’t let bitches tell us what to do.”

 

“If you think she’s telling me shit, you’re blind and stupid. Guess I already figured stupid when you smart off to the Alpha. Do you need help finding your place, here?”

 

“I don’t need help, I just need an Alpha who has a set on him. I came from a gang out west, one who actually did shit. The man in charge would have fucked that bitch then tossed her to the rest of the gang as scraps, not knelt for her like a pussy.”

 

Mason smiled, a flash of teeth that the kid in front of him mistook for friendliness. “You think you can do better?”

 

“Yeah. And if I was in charge, I’d give the Overboss whatever I wanted and she’d fucking love it.”

 

Mason took a knife from his belt and tossed it to the man. “You want to be Alpha? Only one fucking way to get it. Come on, sugar, try me.”

 

The man wrapped his fingers around the hilt and dove. He was fast, but clueless and reckless. Mason sidestepped, bringing his elbow into the men’s ribs. He could have killed him in a heartbeat, but that wasn’t what this needed. He needed to take the man apart, in front of everyone. He needed them to see with their own eyes why he was alpha, be reminded why they all followed him.

 

The man pulled the knife and got Mason’s side, near his ribs. He ignored the sting, backhanding the man.

 

“Anyone else want to play this game with me? Huh?” Mason yelled to the Pack who watched. “Anyone else want to try and take my spot?” Blood from the wound soaked through his shirt, gushing when he lifted his arms. “I’m right here if anything has the balls for it.”

 

No one came forward, so Mason turned his attention back to the man, who had gotten to his feet and still refused to back down.

 

The man dove at Mason, knife held out in front of him. Mason knocked the blade from his hand and used the momentum to flip the man to his back. Mason wrapped his fingers in the man’s hair, and used his other fist the rain down blows to the face below him.

 

“You still think I can’t keep what I claim, huh?”

 

“Mason!” Nora’s voice from behind him had him freeze.

 

“Get out of here, Overboss. This is a Pack problem. Internal struggles don’t really require your input.”

 

She edged around until she stood in front of him. Her face was pale, eyes wide. “He’s down, Mason. There’s no reason to kill him.”

 

“There’s every reason to kill him. He tried to take my place. You think he would have let me walk away from that? If he were in my place, you think he’d have let me live?”

 

“Doesn’t matter what he’d have done. It only matters what you decide to do.”

 

“Go on, she-wolf. You don’t want to see this.” He tried to steel his voice, to get to to do. He had to do this, and she didn't need to see it. Hell, he didn't want her to see it. She was tough, but killing a wounded, unarmed man was a step far for her. She didn't have the stomach for that sort of violence. 

 

Nora crouched down, trying to catch his gaze, to keep it. “Let him go, Mason. This isn’t you.”

 

“I’ve been telling you from the start, this is me. I’m a raider, not some settler, not some farmer, not a soldier. This is exactly who I am. When someone comes up to me trying to fuck up what I have, I’m going to end them.”

 

“Please. Let him go, you don’t have to do this.”

 

"Get the fuck out of here, Nora!" 

 

Her face hardened. "No." 

 

All the words of the man beneath him filtered back through his head. Fuck them all for thinking he couldn’t hold his own, that he wouldn’t do what he wanted, what he knew was right, even if she hated it. This would be the first of many challenges if he let the fucker go now. It would be a bright, blazing signal that say ‘weak alpha’ if he didn’t kill him. Not to mention, the idiot would try again, fools like this always did. And every attack against him would be one against her, too. No, this had to be done no matter if she liked it or not. 

 

Mason pulled his other knife, the one secured against his lower back, and drove it into the man’s chest.

 

Nora’s shock, then disgust, played across her face even after she wiped the blood splatter from her cheek, leaving red streaks, like face paint. 

 

She got up and walk out without another word.


	14. Chapter 14

Nora was four beers deep when the lift started, her fifth already against her lips. It was probably Mason, coming to apologize.

 

Forget him.

 

Cleaning the blood off her face had made her gag. If that was the world they lived in, he could keep it.

 

Instead, it was Gage who stepped off the lift. He laughed, taking in the bottled on the floor by the couch. “You having a party and didn’t invite me, boss?”

 

Nora leaned back, stretching her legs out on the couch, feet bare. “It’s called a pity party. Usually it’s a one-person event.”

 

Gage put a hand beneath her ankles and lifted. He scooted onto the couch, dropping her legs across his lap. “That’s the nice thing about this arrangement, you ain’t gotta have pity parties by yourself.”

 

“And what kind of arrangement do we have, Gage? Because I feel like all the arrangements I’ve had are going nowhere fast.”

 

“I’ve told you before, we’ve got whatever arrangement you want us to have. I’m on your side; I want you to do this, to succeed. So whatever you need, that’s what I’m here for.” He rubbed at her feet, digging his thumbs into her arches. “You need a friend? A confidant? I’m here.” He moved up to her calves, pressing hard into muscles she’d taxed too many times. “You need a punching bag or a sounding wall, I’m here.” He pressed behind her knees. “And if you need to let off a little steam?” He moved his hands to her thighs, pressing deep into her inner thigh. “Well, I’d be more than happy to help out there, too. I’m serious when I said I’m here for you, boss, whatever you want.”

 

Nora leaned her head back as he worked her muscles, his words sinking in. If she’d been sober, maybe she’d have stopped him. If she’d been thinking straight, maybe she’d remember not to trust him, but right then? Right then, she wanted to forget about the whole damned park.

 

“So, what do you want? In the whole scheme of things, in all this bullshit, what do you want?”

 

“Why do you care?”

 

“Because I’m good at getting people what they want. There’s a hell of a lot of reasons I like to be second, but that means I gotta get people the things they want. So, boss, what do you want? Why are you out here with us?”

 

Nora whimpered when his fingers found a knot near her hip. “I want what everyone wants: peace.”

 

“No one looking for peace tries to find it with a bunch of raider gangs at each other’s throats.”

 

Her eyes slid closed. “Fine. I want freedom. I want to do things the way I want to. I don’t want to have to do anything for other people, to do others biding. I spent years helping everyone else, running errands for others visions. I want to build my own vision.”

 

“Everyone needs to listen to someone. No one does it all alone.”

 

Nora shrugged, gasping when he used his palm on a muscle over her ribcage. “Maybe. I’ve just been manipulated too many times. I won’t ever let anyone do that to me again.”

 

His hand slipped up to cup her breast through her suit. “You should trust me, boss. I’m looking out for you, not trying to manipulate you.” His thumb brushed over her nipple, and the alcohol let her tolerate it, let her almost pretend it wasn’t Gage at all, that it was Mason. “Relax, okay? You’ve been working hard taking these parks, trying to keep these people in line. Even after The Disciples attacked you, after The Pack took a shot at your home, you’re still here, still swinging. I knew you had what it took to be Overboss. You deserve a break. Just lay back, let me take care of you.”

 

His other hand slipped up her thigh and cupped her cunt, through her suit. That she couldn’t pretend, though. She still wasn’t drunk enough for that. Nora sat up and pulled away.

 

She stumbled, but Gage caught her. “Easy, there. You’re a bit of a lightweight, you know that? Don’t let anyone trick you into a drinking contest, because they’ll have you naked and on all four before you know what hit you.” He walked her to the bed, sitting her on the side of it. He reached for the zipper of her suit, and she frowned, vision blurry. “Shh, it’s alright. I ain’t gonna try nothing. Just taking this off so you can sleep. Look, I’ve already got a tank top for you.”

 

She sat, passive, so damned tired, while he undressed her. True to his word, he didn’t do anything else. He slid on the tank top, then pulled the blanket over her. “Get some sleep, boss, and think about what I said.”

 

She rolled over and tried to think about nothing at all.

 

#

 

Mason walked up to the lift, and didn’t it fucking figure Gage would be coming down. “Out of the way,” Mason snarled.

 

“What did you do to piss her off, huh? How exactly did you mange to fuck that up?”

 

“Keep your nose out of my shit, Gage. I’m here to see the Overboss, not her lackey.”

 

“Well, that’s too bad, because whatever you did made her tell me not to let you up.”

 

“You’re lying.”

 

“You think? Because she said it right before she let me fuck her.”

 

Mason grabbed Gage and shoved him back, against the wall. “You lie.”

 

“You notice that birthmark she has? The one right on the inside of her thigh? Fuck, I could tongue that spot all day, well, if there weren’t more interesting places close by.”

 

Violence swirled inside Mason. He wanted to tear Gage apart. How could she have fucked the raider? She wouldn’t have sex with him, but she gets angry once and takes Gage?

 

A gun cocked behind him. “Let him go,” Caleb ordered.

 

“You’re here to protect Nora, not this asshole.”

 

“I don’t want dead bodies at her doorstep. Separate and go play nicely in your own rooms, or go fuck each other over somewhere else. Just not here.”

 

Mason released Gage and lifted his hands. “Fine. But I’m going to come back. This isn’t over.”

 

“Yeah, it is. You lost. You screwed it up. First you attack her home, then you did whatever you did to piss her off again. That’s finished.”

 

“I didn’t attack Sanctuary.” Mason clenched his teeth together, shoving he words out between them.

 

“Seems like you did. Look, it’s over. Overboss finally realized she didn’t need you, that you’re nothing but a liability to her, and look how fast she replaced you? Get out of here, Mason, and hope like hell she still gives your gang anything.”

 

Mason stumbled backward, head spinning. Nora had replaced him?

 

The idea of Gage on top of her, kissing her, fucking her, it spun across his eyelids like a fucking joke. There had to be some mistake, something he wasn’t seeing, something he didn’t understand. His Nora wouldn’t do this.

 

He just had to wait to figure it out.

 

And hope he was right.


	15. Chapter 15

 

Caleb kept his hand on his rifle, eyes trained on Cito.

 

“Relax, he’s friendly.” Nora bumped into Caleb’s shoulder, trying to get him to ease up. The strange ape-man reminded her of Strong, and maybe that was why she liked him. Not to mention she’d sit and watch him shirtless all day long if she had time.

 

“Yeah, I’m not as sure of that as you are. He seems like an idiot, and in my experience, idiots are dangerous.”

 

Safari had taken them two days to clear. Sleeping in an old animal cage with a bunch of Gorillas hadn’t been on her bucket list, but housing options were lacking. She only wished she could have found a scientist alive so she could have killed them again for creating Gatorclaws. Whoever thought that was a good idea was a fool. Next, she was going to hear of people keeping Deathclaws like junkyard dogs.

 

Maybe she could gift Arthur with one.

 

Nora sat on a short wall, resting. Taking a park the morning after getting drunk wasn’t the best choice she’d ever made, but hungover or not, things needed to get done. What she wouldn’t give for some good old fashion aspirin. They seemed to have every chem you could want, but nothing to just take the edge off a headache, and when fighting walking alligator hybrids, you didn’t want your head muddled from Med-x.

 

Not that she’d admit to the headache. Gage had already laughed at her when she denied any hangover at all as he handed her water.

 

The only blessing was that he hadn’t mentioned coming onto her the night before. She still didn’t know what to think about it, what to say. She didn’t trust Gage, but she’d trusted Mason and that hadn’t seemed to work out well. She’d trusted Shaun, and look what happened there. She’d trusted Bobbi and she’d almost gotten her killed. The truth was, knowing who to trust wasn’t a skill she excelled at.

 

And Gage had helped her, over and over. He saved her from the Disciples, he’d made sure she won the fight with Colter. He helped her make decisions, gave her information on everyone involved, followed her directions even when he didn’t agree with them. So why couldn’t she shake the feeling he couldn’t be trusted?

 

 And Mason? Well, he hadn’t shown at all. She’d expected him to come strolling in, all anger and annoyance. She expected him to snarl a bit, to tell her she didn’t understand, something. She wanted to yell and fight and get over it.

 

But he never came, and didn’t that say something? Maybe she’d been foolish, just like Gage had said. Maybe she wanted something from him he couldn’t give, something he didn’t plan on giving.

 

Nora took a drink of her water and tried to push that out of her mind. Another park down meant it was time to celebrate, not wade around in love life problems.

 

“Who we giving this one to?” Gage stood by the flag pole, digging through his pack. “I’m gonna suggest Operators. They’ve been on good behavior, unlike the others.”

 

Nora took a deep breath. “Give it to the Pack.”

 

“Why? They fucked you over, boss. Skip ‘em, send a message not to fuck with you. You can’t let people get away with this shit or they’ll see you as weak.”

 

“No. Whatever happened with Mason and me has no bearing on what’s right, and what is right is to give it to the Pack. This is the park they wanted, and they’re the next in line. I’m going to do this the right way, the fair way, no matter what. I wouldn’t give him extra benefits because I liked him, and I won’t take away benefits just because I don’t like him much right now.”

 

Gage pressed his lips into a thin line, but turned and strung up the Pack flag.  

 

#

 

“Overboss? We got a problem.” A Pack member waved Nora over as she passed the market after they got back.

 

She kept a hand on her weapon as she followed him, around a corner. She knew better than to trust anyone. “What’s wrong?”

 

“You got a visitor. Said he was from the Commonwealth, so I sent him on up to your quarters. Ain’t safe for new people to come strolling in here without protection, you know? A few of the other raiders from the other gangs got twitchy. Brotherhood has made ‘em nervous so someone else new got ‘em riled. But I know you’ve been fair with us, and I didn’t want to see him get gutted until you talked to him.”

 

“He give a name?”

 

The man shook his head. “No, just said he needed to talk to Nora Jacobs, now. He looked pissed, though, Overboss. I took his weapons, but be careful.”

 

She thanked him and headed for Fizztop Mountain. Gage was off, running errands, which left her with Caleb. At least she knew with him, she wasn’t about to get jumped. She’d grown used to Caleb, relied on him always having her back. As far as bodyguards went, she could have done a lot worse.

 

It wasn’t Arthur, he wouldn’t be just waiting for her. He’d have tracked her down with a few soldiers. Arthur wasn’t the sort of sit and wait for someone to return. Likewise, Danse, in his power armor, wasn’t someone easy to forget and they’d just assume it was more Brotherhood. MacCready maybe? Not Nick, people couldn’t mention him without mentioning him being a synth.

 

The lift took forever, but at the top, Nora came face to face with a very angry Preston.

 

“Preston, what are you doing here?”

 

The minuteman didn’t wear anger well. “Why are you attacking our settlements?”

 

Nora took a step back. “What are you talking about? I’ve never attacked anything in the Commonwealth.”

 

“I thought more of you than this. Even when you refused to become General, I thought you were a good woman.” He shook his head. “I can’t believe you’re a raider, now.”

 

“I didn’t attack anything, Preston. I’ve been clearing parks here in Nuka World, that’s it. I know about the attack on Sanctuary, I already talked to Nick about it. That wasn’t me.”

 

“Really? And it wasn’t you when people burned Sunshine Tidings and killed the settlers? It wasn’t you who slaughtered those at Taffington Boathouse! Because I’ve to say, Nora, when I see raiders leaving damned Nuka World flyers behind, I have trouble believing you.”

 

Nora took a step back. She’d never seen Preston like that, and for the first time, she was glad they’d disarmed him. He looked angry enough to shoot her.

 

“I didn’t do this, Preston. You know me, you’ve known me a long time. I wouldn’t kill innocents.”

 

“I thought I knew you, yeah. Even when you said you didn’t want to run the minutemen, I thought I knew you. Then you went off with the Brotherhood of all people, and now you’ve fallen even farther, becoming the thing we despised, the thing we fought against, nothing but a raider. Nothing you could say is gonna convince me you aren’t playing both sides here. I’ve been tricked by people giving into raiders before, and it almost killed me and those I was protecting. I won’t let it happen again. I’m here to put you on notice. You step foot in the Commonwealth, you or any of your raiders, and my men will shoot on sight.”

 

“Don’t do this, Preston.”

 

“It’s already done. You ran away from everything? Well, guess what. You’re on your own, now.”


	16. Chapter 16

Mason stood in Nora’s quarters. Damn, he’d wanted to be here so many times in the last week, he dreamed of this fucking place every night.

 

But not like this.

 

To his left stood Nisha, picking dirt from beneath her finger nails with a bloody knife, and to his right Mags and William stood. They’d all been summoned by the boss, like some official meeting.

 

Nora walked in from the doors, and fuck, he’d missed her. Her hair was pulled back, face covered in tension. Girl hadn’t been sleeping worth shit, but none of that changed how fucking happy he was to see her. She could have been covered in ghoul innards and he’d still have rolled around with her if she gave him the chance.

 

“Let’s get straight to the point,” she said, refusing to meet his gaze.

 

So this wasn’t going to be a friendly chat, it seemed.

 

“Someone is fucking with me I’m going to figure out who.” The curse word had him cocking up an eyebrow. His she-wolf was showing her teeth, that was for sure. “One of you has attacked Sanctuary, my home. One of you has been attacking minutemen protected settlements in the Commonwealth without my approval. Anyone want to fess up to this?” She set on hand on a hip and glared, meeting the gaze of each, except Mason.

 

Did she believe he hadn’t done it, or was she just too much of a coward to look at him?

 

“You dragged me all the way in here for this?” Nisha rolled her knife over her knuckles. “The only one fucking you as far as I know has been Mason.”

 

Nora pulled her gun and fired bullet close enough to graze Nisha’s arm. The Disciple leader allowed herself a moment of shock before she buried beneath disinterred. “So you do have some fire in you after all.”

 

“It occurs to me that part of the problem here is that you all don’t know much about me. I walked in here after killing Colter, and I started handing out parks and running errands for you lot, but I never really introduced myself, did I?” She kept the pistol in her hand. “My name Nora Jacobs, and I was born over 220 years ago. I was alive the day the world ended, and I watch them drop the bombs that ended it.” She shot the wall behind Mags and William, the bullet flying between them, inches from them.

 

“I woke up to find out someone killed my husband and stole my child. I found the man who did it, and I tore through a hundred gen2 synths before I ended him. But he didn’t have my kid. So I broke into the Institute, a place no one could even find before me, and when I found out they’d destroyed my son, I blew the place to hell along with everyone inside. I went from a recruit to a sentinel of the Brotherhood, and I took out the entire Railroad.” She released another bullet, this one into the ground by Mason’s foot.

 

“I lived through doomsday. I tore apart the biggest threat the Commonwealth ever faced. I will not be killed by a bunch of raiders in a theme park. So if any of you think you can screw me over? If any of you think you’ve got what it takes to outsmart me, I suggest you think again. I will figure it out who is responsible for this and I will hold them responsible for it, and what I do to them will make it look like I let the Institute off easy. Now, get out.”

 

Mason grinned as Nisha, Mags, and William all but ran out of the room. Fuck, he’d never seen anything hotter than that.

 

His she-wolf had her fur on end, ready to tear out the throat of anyone who stood against her, and he loved it.

 

“You need something?”

 

He laughed. “That was quite a show.”

 

“I’m sick of this game. I don’t like feeling like people are using me, like they’re manipulating me. Sanctuary was bad enough, but now someone is hitting settlements in the Commonwealth, killing people in my name.”

 

He frowned. He hadn’t heard that, but he tended not to worry about what happened in the Commonwealth anyway, not unless it affected him or the Pack. “No idea who it was?”

 

“No survivors to give us anything. Just a bunch of Nuka World flyers left behind, mocking the minutemen.”

 

Damn, he could understand her anger now. That sort of game was a rough one. He’d bet his money on Mags, still. Nisha didn’t do much underhanded, but Mags would.

 

“Shouldn’t need to say it, but it wasn’t me. You know that, right?”

 

She sighed and sat on a stool, all that bravado gone. “I don’t know what to think anymore, don’t know who to trust. It was easy before. The enemy was the Institute. Now, I don’t know who my enemy is, and that makes it damned hard to know who my friends are. Now I’m all alone.”

 

Mason stayed across the room. “Not sure how else I can convince you I’m on your side.”

 

 She stared down at her hands. “Why’d you kill that man?”

 

“Because he needed to die. The Pack isn’t full of bunnies and puppies, it’s full of killers. When someone wants my spot, when they try to take it, that isn’t the sort of thing I can let pass. I let it go, there’s ten more behind him trying the same. Sometimes you have to be hard to draw a line, to prevent more violence in the future. I’d think someone who blew up the Institute would understand that.”

 

She sighed, dropping the pistol on the bar. “Maybe. Go on back to the pack, Mason. I’ve got things to figure out.”

 

He wanted to stay, to help her, to take care of her. Fuck, for all that fire she’d been breathing, she looked worn out, now. Dark circles lined her eyes, skin pale.  She looked like hell.

 

He found it hard to be too angry about her fucking Gage. He’d said enough times that was a part of their life, right? She and he had argued, and if he knew Gage at all the bastard had been waiting for the chance to get in the way. Hell, a mistake was a mistake, right? Happened to the best of ‘em.

 

But pushing his luck wasn’t getting him anything, so he didn’t try to stay. “Yeah, sure. You know where to find me.”

 

She gave him a small smile, one drenched in exhaustion. “Yeah, I do.”


	17. Chapter 17

Mason stretched his legs out as he sat at the table in the Parlor across from Mags and William. The raider bosses didn’t get together much, but after the tongue lashing they’d gotten, it seemed time.

 

“So, what’s your game?”

 

Mags tilted her head, that perfect hair of hers falling over her left shoulder. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

 

Fuck, he hated her. He couldn’t help it. She and her brother had grown up rich, you could just tell. It was in the way they talked to other people, the way they looked down their noses at ‘em. They dug in the same shit as him, just other raiders, but they acted like they were better.

 

William wasn’t so bad, but Mags? She was high maintenance.

 

“Don’t fuck with me here, Mags. You’re lucky I’m not howling for you head after trying to pin Sanctuary on me.”

 

William frowned, taking another drink but saying nothing.

 

“Like I said, I have no idea what you’re talking about. Last I heard, the Pack attacked Sanctuary.”  

 

“Please. We both know if my boys had hit that settlement they’d have done a lot more than wing a reporter. Hell, I’ve been there, you think I wouldn’t have told ‘em how to get past those defenses?”

 

“Again, even if someone set you up, why do you think it was me?”

 

“Because Nisha doesn’t have the attention span to pull something like this. Not to mention, Nisha had a few boys who jumped the Boss for no good reason. Seems you’re the only one who’s kept her nose clean, and to me, that smells a lot like bullshit.”

 

“I’m surprised you’re this protective over the Overboss. I knew you were fucking her, but since you aren’t the only one, I wouldn’t have figured so much possessiveness. Then again, animals and men rarely think beyond their dicks.”

 

“This isn’t about her.”

 

“Are you sure? Because from where I’m sitting, which is not between her legs, it seems like she’s kept you on a pretty tight leash.”

 

“Fuck you, Mags.”

 

William remained silent, and though he rarely spoke, the fact he didn’t pipe in when Mason insulted Mags left an impression. Trouble in paradise between the two?

 

“Thank you, but I’m not into bestiality. You don’t like games, then I’ll tell you straight. The Overboss has been fucking Gage for a while, keeping you close enough, and interested enough, to be useful. She may not have the muscle you do, but don’t think she’s weak. That woman has had you doing her bidding from the start.”

 

“I haven’t done shit for her.”

 

“Really? Would you have let Colter get away with slapping you in front of your boys? Would you be here accusing me of this for anyone else? Would you  have gone traipsing around the commonwealth for anyone else? You’re letting Brotherhood soldiers invade your space. You were itching for Overboss before her, but you don’t seem to be trying anymore. Why is that?” Mags released a soft chuckle. “Ah, Mason. I can’t even blame you. I have my charms, but she puts me to shame. Between you and Gage, she’s got a lot of muscle willing to do anything for her.”   

 

Mason stood, shoving the chair back hard enough it clattered to the floor. “You don’t know shit, Mags.”

 

“If that’s what you want to believe, fine. But they get together almost every night just after dusk. If you want to check it out, be careful. From what I hear, Overboss likes it a bit rough.”

 

Mason slammed the door to the Parlor closed behind him.

 

#

 

Nora drank down the last of the beer. Gage had left it for her, cold, an apology for having to run an errand. He’d be gone all night, but she didn’t mind. Maybe she’d get a good night’s sleep for once.

 

She sighed and stumbled to the bed, surprised one beer hit her so hard. Maybe it was her lack of sleep, maybe it was how hard she’d pushed herself lately. All of that would catch up to her eventually. Try as she might, she wasn’t immortal.

 

She pulled off her suit, too tired to bother with the tank top, and laid on the bed in just her underwear. She rolled to her stomach, trying to get comfortable. Her head swam, the room spinning.

 

The room went dark as something covered her eyes. She struggled, her body feeling weaker than it should.

 

“Shhh, she-wolf,” came a whispered voice.

 

“Mason?”

 

He didn’t answer, sliding his hands down the skin of her sides. Was he sorry? Sorry they fought, sorry they’d ended up where they had?

 

She was sorry. Tears threatened to fall, to soak into the cloth tied around her eyes. How had they ended up here? Why had she let so much bullshit get between them? None of it mattered, but still, it had cluttered everything up.

 

He reached beneath her chest, sliding a thumb against her nipple. She gasped, pulling back, but a hand between her shoulder blades kept her still.

 

He slid her underwear off, and she forgot to even try to roll over. When had her body gotten so heavy? How had one beer done this? She couldn’t think straight.

 

His cock slid against her folds, between her legs, but he didn’t push in. He just rocked against her, wrapping a hand in her hair and yanking her head back.

 

Something was wrong, but she didn’t know what the fuck it was.

 

#

 

Mason stared at Gage, naked, on top of Nora. From the lift, he had a pretty fucking good view of him screwing her from behind, and that didn’t look full of first time anxiety. Those were two people who had done this before. She didn’t pull, she didn’t do anything. She gave in to him like they’d been there lots of times, her body relaxed.

 

Mags had been telling the truth. Nora had been using him the whole damned time.

 

Mason growled and hit the lift button again, before they saw him. What else was there to do? He wasn’t going to embarrass himself further by causing a scene, by admitting how fucking much it hurt, how stupid he’d been to trust her, to think they had anything between them.

 

Fuck Nora and fuck relationships.

 


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: this chapter contains explicit attempted rape

 

The sound of the lift going down echoed somewhere in Nora’s mind, but she couldn’t focus on it. Her thoughts felt like she drug them through sludge, like she was fighting a radstorm to catch a single thought.

 

Lips pressed against her shoulder blade in a gentle kiss, and Nora froze.

 

The man behind her wasn’t Mason. She knew it when his smooth face touched her, when his kiss lacked the scratch of Mason’s facial hair. After their time together, she’d know the touch of Mason’s lips anywhere.

 

She struggled then, though her body still wouldn’t work right. The body held her there for another moment before lifting and flipping her over. He fastened his lips over a nipple, like he could distract her, but she dug her nails into his cheek, catching on something.

 

A strap.

 

An eyepatch.

 

“Stop it,” she mumbled, frustrated by her voice, which came out slurred.

 

The blindfold was removed, and sure enough, Gage’s face stared down at her. Her stomach rolled at the way he rested between her thighs, his hardness pressing against her, but thank god, he hadn’t actually entered her.

 

“Get off me,” she pleaded, panic clawing at her even though her body was sluggish.

 

“Shhh, it’s okay, Nora. It’s just me. I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m not gonna hurt you.” He kissed her jawline, and the softness of it broke her. If he’d been rough, maybe it would have been better, instead of this damn seduction he tried.  

 

“I know it’s you. Off, now.” Her hands shoved at his chest but she couldn’t budge him.

 

“Come on. We’ve been headed this way for a while. I’m your partner here, I just want you to trust me.”

 

“You’re trying to rape me, Gage, how can you ask me to trust you?”

 

“I ain’t doing anything like that. I’m just trying to convince you, make you see reason.” He drug his tongue up her chest, and the slimy line of saliva behind it made her want to retch.

 

Why couldn’t she fight him? Why couldn’t she get him off her? Nora wasn’t as strong as him, but she should be able to put up some fight.

 

The beer. The one he’d left for her. . .

 

“You drugged me?”

 

“Just a little bit of Med-x. It’s not much, ain’t gonna hurt you, just enough to relax you, make this easier, make you listen. You’ve been fighting this for no reason, figured you might see reason with a little help. Come on, boss, this is fine. You were enjoying it before, just close your eyes and enjoy it again. Pretend I’m anyone you want me to be. Let me do this for you.” He rocked his hips against her, still not enough to push in, and she shoved him.

 

“I don’t want you, Gage. I made that clear already.”

 

“You need me. We’re a team here, and I’m trying everything to make this work. Lay back and accept that you need me, that we’re in this together-“

 

Then he was gone. Something hit the wall, crashing down.

 

Someone else stood above her, and she twisted away, falling to the floor in a frantic heap. Her knees stung from the impact, scrapped she crawled, blind and body not working right. Was it another raider?

 

After Gage, she panicked.

 

“Hey, hey. It’s okay.” A blanket went around her shoulders but no one touched her. She clutched it around her like a set of power armor.

 

Nora stared up, her head clearing a bit, eyes focusing enough to recognize the man.

 

“Caleb?”

 

He nodded, face furious. She’d seen that look before, it was the look of man trying hard not to look angry when he wanted to kill someone. “I heard you whimpering, came in to check on you, make sure everything was okay.” He used the muzzle of the rifle to indicate Gage, who had a swelling red mark with a cut on his head. “You want me to kill him? One bullet and he’s gone.”

 

Nora used the blanket to wipe her cheek, then clutched it around her as she stood, legs unsteady. “No. Let him go.”

 

“Jacobs. After what he did, no one would blame you. The fucker deserves a lot worse than a bullet to the head.”

 

Nora ignored Caleb and pointed on finger at Gage. “You show your face here again, and I’m going to personally castrate you. I don’t want to ever run into you again. Not here, not sniffing around the Commonwealth, nowhere. You want to keep all your parts, I suggest you run as far west as you can manage. Do you understand me?”

 

“We were supposed to be a team. You were supposed to understand that.”

 

“Fuck you, Gage.” Nora wound her foot back and kicked him in the ribs. It shot pain up her foot, but she ignored it. Any pain was worth the satisfaction at seeing him hunched over.

 

Nora reached into the medical kit on the nightstand. Psycho. She’d spent enough time with Hancock to know the perfect way to combat Med-x was with a good dose of Psycho. Spending time with the junkie had its perks.

 

She injected the chems, leaning against the wall as they took effect. “Will you escort him to the tram? I want him on the first train out of here, and I want to know he gets there. I can't trust any of the raiders to do it.”

 

“Is it safe to leave you?”

 

“With him handled? I think I may be a hell of a lot safer than I have been in a while.”

 

“Sure, but where are you going?” Caleb turned his back on her as she redressed, like he knew how unsettled she still was, but he kept Gage in the cross hairs of his rifle.

 

Nora zipped her suit up and smiled. “I’m going to go bother an Alpha.”


	19. Chapter 19

Mason snarled when Nora walked in. It sent everyone else running, as if they could sense the violence in the room, the anger of their Alpha. No one wanted to face that.

 

“Boss,” he said, voice cold.

 

She hesitated by the door, frowning. “I’m sorry. I should have come here sooner.”

 

“Whys that?”

 

She walked forward, steps slow like she could tell he was angered but didn’t know why. Then again, she had no idea her game was up, did she? She had no idea he’d caught her fucking Gage.

 

“Because I’m sorry. I should have trusted you sooner. I was afraid, of this place, of you, of everything. I know you’ve been on my side, but I just didn’t see it, I guess. ”

 

Such fucking pretty lies. She said ‘em perfect, too. All breathless and full of sorrow.

 

“So that’s why you’re here? To apologize?” He sneered the word.

 

Nora reached for the zipper of her vault suit and drug it down. Even as angry as he was, she stunned him. Inch and inch of flawless skin greeted him, and she stripped like a sacrifice. She didn’t speak while she undressed, until she stood by his bed, naked. Fuck, he’d imagined her like that, offering herself up like the best trap in the world. And didn’t he want to crawl right inside that trap and fuck the consequence? “I’m done putting this off, and waiting, and worrying. I don’t care about anything else.” She took a deep breath. “I want you.”

 

He laughed, shaking his head. Gage’s come had to still be inside her. Did he care about that?

 

No, he didn’t fucking care.

 

“Really, sweetheart? You sure? You think you can handle me?”

 

“I want to try.”

 

He walked over to her, spreading her legs so he stood between them. “There’s no trying. You’ve teased me a long time, made me wait a long time. You either say yes or you walk your pretty ass out of here.”

 

Her eyebrows drew together, confusion across her features. Fuck, why hadn’t he realized what a great liar she was? How had he never known? Probably because he never wanted to know. He still had some part of him screaming he was wrong, that he didn’t understand everything. Even he could be stupid, he guessed.

 

She nodded. “I’m ready. I can take it.”

 

Yeah, he bet she could. Having already fucked Gage that night, she might be sore, but he shouldn’t have a problem with her taking him. Didn’t need to go slow and careful, did he?

 

He grabbed her waist and lifted her until she scooted back, to the middle of the bed. Her legs fell open for him as he rested between them. Of course they fell open, they fell open for everyone, didn’t they? Just another tool to use to get what she wanted.

 

No wonder she’d done all those amazing things in the commonwealth. He’d thought it was due to tenacity, to a damn metal spine, to smarts. He’d never realized it was just playing men the way she did.

 

“Tell me to stop,” he snarled into her ear, hands tight on her waist. “Come on, she-wolf, tell me you don’t want me. Last chance; I’ll let you go.”

 

She didn’t answer, so he bit down on her neck. Her body arched up against him, her whimper a mix of pleasure and surprise.

 

“No? Then tell me you want me. I want to hear you say it.” He wanted to hear the lie, wanted it to hurt him.

 

Her hands clung to his shoulders, pulling him closer. “I want you, Mason. Please, I want you.”

 

The words froze him inside. How many had she whispered that to? How many had she lied to, all as foolish as he was. Who cared? He’d waited for this, she told him yes, why not take it?

 

He shoved into her hard, all the way.

 

Her nails dug into his shoulders, and his groan was covered by a pained gasp from her. Her hands swung to his chest and shoved. Fuck, she was tight. His head dropped against her forehead, breathing hard against the sensation of her heat wrapped around him. He’d waited for this, wanted it, and while it felt amazing, he wanted to growl in frustration, because it wasn’t what it should have been.

 

He lifted his chest when she shoved again. Tears ran down from the corners of her eyes, soaking into the mattress. “Crocodile tears? Come on, you’re better than that. Did you try this when Gage fucked you? Played the woman who hadn’t been touched in forever? You’re good at it, you know?”

 

“What are you talking about?” She slammed her fist against his chest. “Get off me.”

 

He pulled out and knelt above her. She yanked away, scrambling back, curling up.  

 

“You played the part beautifully. Hell, even when Gage told me he was fucking you, I didn’t really believe it. But, shit, seeing you together tonight? Yeah, that sunk it in.”

 

“You saw that?” The color drained from her face. It looked like shame, but shame and guilt looked a hell of a lot alike, and he couldn’t trust himself to read her anymore.

 

“Yeah, I saw you. I knew you were vicious, she-wolf, but even I didn’t think you were capable of that.”

 

Her face hardened. “You know, you’re not as smart as you think you are, Mason.” When she stood, she winced, hand grasping her lower stomach.

 

Yeah, fucking two men in a row could do that, and Mason hadn’t been gentle. “No, guess I ain’t that smart. I should have seen through you the second you played the coy virgin that first night. What are you doing here, anyway? You come here to see what else you could get from me? Gage not fuck you well enough?”

 

Nora picked up her clothing, sliding it on. She held her shoulders rigid, lips drawn in a thin line. She walked to the door without saying anything.

 

Mason leapt up and grabbed her arm, pulling her back. “You don’t get to just leave like that. Come on, the game is up, admit it. Why did you come here?”

 

She met his gaze, chin raised. “I came to tell you I loved you, you idiot.”

 

The words drove him back, and she used the chance to retreat.

 

Fuck, they sounded honest, but he probably just wanted that enough to believe ‘em no matter what.

 

She made for one hell of a trap.

 

#

 

Nora didn’t go back to Fizztop Mountain right away. She wandered, first. Word of Gage hadn’t spread, because no one gave her sidelong glances, no one whispered about it.

 

Of course, if she could trust anyone, it was Caleb. He was a tight lipped bastard, and he was trustworthy, even if he was Brotherhood.

 

“Overboss,” whispered a woman.

 

Nora looked over at the Operator. “Yes?”

 

“William wants to see you.”

 

“Tell him I’m tired, far too tired to put up with more of his come ons.”

 

She shook her head, eyes wide. “It’s not that. Please, it is important.”

 

Nora sighed and followed her. They entered the Parlor, and then went to the office where William had tried to seduce her before.

 

“If this is another attempt to have sex with me, I can assure you, I’ve had my limit of offers lately.”

 

He shook his head. “No. I’ve brought you a present.”

 

Nora’s legs gave out as she sat in the chair. Her stomach cramped, still sore from Mason. She shoved that thought away, didn’t want it to play across her face, didn’t want to even think about it. The memory hurt worse than anything else. “I don’t think I want any presents.”

 

“You want this one, trust me.”

 

William opened the bag and let the gift tumble onto the desk.

 

The severed head of Mags stared at her.

 


	20. Chapter 20

Nora spent two days there, in the Parlor. She took Mags bed, and William was a comfort she hadn’t expected.

 

“You need to eat,” he said, setting a bowl of soup beside her. “A day or two to recover is expected, but if you stay away much longer, you’re going to find trouble. Unless. . .” he took a deep breath. “Unless you’ve decided this isn’t worth it anymore. If you wanted to leave, I’d sneak you out of the park.”

 

“Why? Why are you helping me? Why did you kill your sister?”

 

“Mags worked against the welfare of the Operators and behind my back. She lied to me, which meant I can’t trust her. If I couldn’t trust her, I couldn’t keep her around. Not to mention, after your spiel, I realized which bot I’d rather bet on.”

 

Nora laughed, and empty, dead sound. Yeah, after that speech she seemed a good bet. Too bad he hadn’t seen anything more, like her being screwed over by everyone she thought would help her. Then she hid and licked her wounds, like a dog. If he’d known all that, he’d have kicked her to the curb as the longshot.

 

“So, boss, what do you want?”

 

“You know, I’ve been asked that a lot. Everyone asks me what I want. Arthur wanted to know. Mason wanted to know. Gage wanted to know. Now you. I had a friend once, and he told me that to predict any person you needed to know the big three: caps, beliefs, and ego.”

 

“Smart friend. What happened to him?”

 

“I killed him, and he never saw it coming. I guess he didn’t know those things about me that well, huh? Hell, maybe I don’t know them that well. Maybe that’s the truth, that I have no idea what I really want.”

 

“Well, sweetheart, you’re in a good place because you can have whatever the hell you want here. You just have to figure out what that is.”

 

Nora took the bowl and had a bite, even though she knew the answer.

 

What did she want?

 

Mason, but maybe some people never got what they wanted.

 

#

 

Mason stormed through the Pack, shoving anyone stupid enough not to move out of his way.

 

Three days and no one knew where the fuck Nora was. Gage was missing, Nora was gone, and only the Brotherhood remained.

 

She wouldn’t have run off, that wasn’t her style. His she-wolf didn’t run.

 

He’d gotten into four fights since she’d been gone, strung too tight to let anything go. Not that the Pack minded, his people were nothing if not brawlers. Blood and bruises were badges of honor, and they gave and took them with a smile.

 

Every night the sight of her face, pained and upset, plagued him. He couldn’t sleep, couldn’t do anything but repeat what had happened over and over. Fuck, he felt like he’d missed something, something important. That wasn’t the face of a liar who’d gotten caught, it was the face of someone who’d had her heart ripped out.

 

Ripped out by him, after he’d hurt her on purpose.

 

Hell, he just needed to find her, to figure this out. He felt like he had a huge fucking hole in his chest, and he didn’t know how to fix it.

 

#

 

Nora pulled on her armor over her vaultsuit, William helping to secure the chest piece behind her. Who’d have thought William would become her one friend in all of this?

 

Then again, it was hard to doubt a man who killed his sister for betraying him. He’d pledged his gang to Nora, to supporting her, as long as she laid the blame on Mags shoulders. And, even though her instincts had been off lately, she believed him.

 

“Ready to get back to it, Overboss?”

 

Nora nodded as William tied her hair back. “You know, I never would have figured you for a stylist.”

 

He laughed. “I learned by doing Mags hair for her.”

 

“Do you miss her?”

 

He fastened Nora’s hair with a piece of ribbon. “Not really. Everyone thinks we were close, that we were too close for brother and sister, but it wasn’t like that. I always figured Mags was the smart one, always listened to her, defended her. When I realized that she’d been lying to me, that she’d gone behind my back and betrayed not only me, but our gang, I realized I should have never given up control to her.” He took one more look at Nora, then smiled. “Forget about her, though. Go on, Nora. Back to work. No more time to lay around, this isn’t a spa.”

 

As Nora walked through the park, she realized she was terrified. Terrified to walk into Fizztop Mountain alone. Before, she had Gage, and even if it turned out he was a manipulative son of a bitch, she’d still had someone. Now she had to walk in alone, to do this on her own. Even with William behind her, even with Caleb, the idea of making the decisions on her own had her doubting herself.

 

What if she fucked it up? What if she couldn’t do this? What if everything so far had been Gage, and he’d been right, and she needed him?  
Nora hit the button to the lift, taking a deep breath. She could do this.

 

She rode the lift up, and came face to face with Gage.

 

She reached for her weapon, but he had the advantage of surprise. He knocked it from her hand and wrapped an arm around her throat. “Relax, Nora. I ain’t here to hurt you.”

 

“After the last time? You could have fooled me.” Nora tried to swing her head back, but he avoiding it.

 

“You are feisty, sweetheart. I wish we could have made things work. I didn’t want this, you know? I wanted you to succeed here, for us both to work together and succeed. I worked hard for that. Unfortunately, you turned down my offers, so I had to get creative.”

 

She held still, fear finally creeping in. It was the confidence he spoke with that scared her, the way he wasn’t playing anymore, the way he was so sure he’d already won. “What did you do, Gage?”

 

Gage didn’t get a chance to answer as Arthur Maxson walked through the doorway. He cupped Nora’s chin in his hand, and smiled down at her. “Hello again, Darling.”

 

 


	21. Chapter 21

 

“You son of a bitch!” Nora lunged, trying to get free so she could land a hit on Gage.

 

“Shh, Nora. It’s okay,” Arthur all but purred to her. He placed his hands on the sides of her face, brushing his forehead against hers, like a lover. “You’re safe. You know I won’t hurt you.”

 

“You’re the one who needs to be worried. One yell from me and you have a park full of raiders to tear you apart. I just made the walk from the Parlor, you don’t have enough men here to win. My men will destroy you.”

 

Arthur took a step back and nodded at the couch. Gage yanked her over, then tossed her forward. She fell against the cushions, but righted herself and took a seat. Unarmed, she didn’t have a chance against Gage and Arthur.

 

“Careful with her!” Arthur leveled a glared at Gage. “You’re touching my future wife; I suggest you do so with more respect.”

 

“Future wife?” She snorted. “Have you been drinking more than usual, Arthur? Though really, that’s hard to do.”

 

He placed his hands behind him, and she could see the way they flexed in anger. Just a boy easy to provoke. He looked at Gage then nodded at her. “Please explain her situation to her, Gage.”

 

Gage pulled a chair up and sat in front of Nora, but out of range for her to reach him. She was tempted to try, just for the satisfaction.

 

“Listen up, okay? No one wants to see you hurt today. You’ve been out maneuvered. You could scream, sure, and there’s bound to be a lot of blood and a lot of bodies. We don’t have enough soldiers here, but you can bet we do outside the gates. They won’t take more than a few minutes to swarm in, and you know power armor steel will tear through unexpecting raiders.”

 

She sat up straight. “What do you want?”

 

“What I always wanted, to help the Overboss. I wanted it to be you. Hell, boss, I tried. I didn’t want this to happen like this. I had everything planned. Mags was gonna drive away the other gangs to make sure we had the Operators as our first line. I wanted the Pack in, too. Disciples woulda been killed off, because Nisha would have skinned me alive her first chance. We were gonna make a boatload of caps and all be happy as fuck, but then you had to go and make googly eyes as Mason and fuck it up. What did you even see in that moron?”

 

“Get to the point.”

 

“When you kicked me out, I had to make other plans. I contacted Maxson and agreed to hand you over to him. You’ll run off with him, marry him, and pop out little legacy babies. You all can be happy as fuck with your perfect little lives and forget all about Nuka World, okay?”

 

Nora laughed and shook her head. “That’s going to happen about never.”

 

“I think you’ll be surprised. See, this can go one of two ways. First, you fight us on this. If that happens, Maxson lends me troops, who slaughter the pack, and Mason. I’ll make sure you get to watch him die, too. See, I’ll want you to know that his death is your fault, I will want you to carry that image with you forever. And, after that happens, you’ll still go with Maxson. Option two, which I prefer, is you head out of here peacefully. I offer Mason the Overboss position, and Maxson leaves me enough security to keep everyone else in line.”

 

“You think Mason is going to just let that happen?”

 

“I think Mason is going to be so fucking happy to be Overboss he isn’t gonna care that you ran off to marry Maxson. You think you know him, but let me tell you, he wants power. If he ever had to choose between Overboss and you, he’d pick the power any day of the week. ”

 

Arthur spoke from the side. “I’ll give you a good life, Nora. I know we haven’t always gotten along, and I know you don’t want this, but I’ll make you happy. You’ll be loved, cared for, never want for anything.”

 

“I don’t love you.”

 

“I know that, but you will. In time, you’ll realize I’m not your enemy. You’re a smart woman, you know the right choice here. Either way, you’re still coming with me. The only question is, how many people do you want to die before that happens? How many people will you let die before you give in?”

 

Nora looked down at her hands.

 

What did she want? What mattered more to her than anything else?

 

For the first time, the answer was so clear.

 

“If I say yes, Mason won’t be hurt, right?” She nailed Gage with a look full of every bit of threat she could manage. “If I find out Mason is harmed in any way, no distance will keep you safe from me.”

 

Gage swallowed once, but nodded. “You have my word. I never wanted to kill him, and I don’t want to be Overboss. You go peacefully, everyone gets what they want.”

 

“Everyone but me, you mean.”

 

No one answered her, so she stood, slowly, then turned to Arthur. “Alright. I’ll go.”


	22. Chapter 22

Mason glared at the Brotherhood soldier who stormed up to the stage. They never entered his territory, always gave him space. Maybe they knew that once they entered someone’s territory, the chances that they fall off the face of the Earth increased.

 

Of course, this was the one who followed Nora around.

 

“What do you want?”

 

“You fucking idiot!” The man charged Mason, and the two fell back into the dirt. They exchanged blows, rolling, everyone moving out of their way.

 

Pack didn’t get in the middle of other people’s fights. If you couldn’t hold your own, that was your own problem. It weeded out the weak, proved the worth of the strong.

 

Mason ended up on top of the man. He held him down, but didn’t attack. He thought back until he could recall his name. “What the fuck is your problem, Caleb?”

 

“You are. It’s all your fault, you know that? She would have done anything for you.”

 

“What the fuck are you on about? Nora was fucking Gage, she was using me. She didn’t a shit about me.”

 

“You should use your bloody eyes instead of making guesses. That night, what you saw, was Gage trying to rape her. He drugged her beer and made her think it was you. As soon as she realized it wasn’t you, she fought him. I hauled his ass off her when he wouldn’t take no for answer.”

 

Mason leapt off Caleb, his skin shrinking down at the thought, his blood pounding. He’d been right there and Gage had been trying to rape her? He’d left Nora to fight Gage off herself? He began to pace. “Are you sure?”

 

“Yes, I’m fucking sure. Why do you think Gage disappeared after that? Because I threw his ass on a train like she told me to! Then she comes to see you, and whatever you did broke her. Hell, she had Gage all over her and she bounces back but you? You ripped her apart.”

 

He forced his food to stay down as he thought about the night, about what he’d done to her, how stupid he’d been. Everything fell into place. The shame when he’d mentioned it, her anger at his accusations. She hadn’t been using him, she’d been being used by Gage. And instead of doing shit to protect her, he’d hurt her more. “Where is she?”

 

“She just got on a vertibird with Maxson.”

 

Mason’s blood ran cold. “What?”

 

“Gage made a deal with him to hand her over.”

 

“Why would she agree to that? Nora hates him. She wouldn’t give in.”

 

“Because if she didn’t, they were going to have you killed. Gage threatened your life, made her exchange her freedom for your life. Expect a summons any minute now, because Gage isn’t done trying to manipulate you all yet.”

 

Mason turned to his second. “Things are going to get ugly. Make sure everyone is armed and be ready.” He turned to Caleb. “You can fly a Vertibird, right?”

 

“Of course.”

 

“Good. Take a group of my men and secure us one.”

 

“Why?”

 

“Because after I’m done with Gage, I’m going to need a ride up to the Prydwen.”

 

#

 

Mason stood in front of Gage, and it took everything he had not to cut the bastard down where he stood. Beside him was William, and Nisha last. He’d heard about Mags, the unfortunate bit where William cut off her head.

 

He had to admit, it raised his opinion of the boy.

 

“So, with Nora having left, we have a spot open for Overboss.”

 

“I hope you know I’ll never follow you,” Nisha said.

 

“I don’t expect you to. I ain’t planning on being Overboss. The new Overboss will be Mason.”

 

“Like fuck I will. I know you tricked Nora into this, forced her to leave.” Mason crossed his arms over his chest, making sure he stood taller than the other raider.

 

“Nora made a choice. She decided to leave, to marry Arthur. You really want to give up your chance at running this place? Come on, Mason, you’ve wanted this forever. Nora never belonged here, she was never one of us. She belongs with Maxson, and you belong here, as Overboss.”

 

Mason sneered, but looked over at William and Nisha. “This park aint only mine. What do you two think?”

 

Nisha played with her blade, always unsettling since you couldn’t see her eyes, couldn’t judge her moods. Well, anyone who knew her knew her mood was violent. All the time. “I say we skin the bastard. He’s been pitting us against each other for years. I got nothing against Nora, but I got lots against this asshole.”

 

William met Mason’s gaze, and Mason shuddered from the strength there. Yeah, he’d always assumed William the pretty, weak one of the siblings, but that look said he was dead wrong. “Nora was a good Overboss. She did what none of us managed. She bleed for us. She was fair, even when she thought she’d been betrayed. We’ve never had peace like this, even when Gage tried to get us to tear each other apart. I saw we string him up.”

 

Gage took a step backward, but Mason was faster. He palmed his blade and shoved it between the raider’s ribs. “This is for Nora, you asshole.”

 

Gage’s eyes went wide, like this was the one move he hadn’t expected, the one play he hadn’t seen coming.

 

His body feel to the ground, and Mason turned back to the other bosses.

 

“What now?” William asked.

 

“Now? We go get our Overboss back.”


	23. Chapter 23

 

Nora sat across from Arthur in his quarters. He hadn’t tried to speak to her during the flight, hadn’t done anything but watch her.

 

Did he think she’d throw herself from the Vertibird? She didn’t quit. She only retreated long enough to gain an upper hand.

 

Then he’d left her alone, given her a night by herself, a night to settle in, in his quarters. Where he’d slept, she had no idea, didn’t ask, didn’t care. He’d placed guards outside his door to make sure she didn’t leave, but other than that, she’d been alone.

 

And damn, alone felt nice, then. Alone beat Arthur, beat her thinking about her future, beat him trying to force her to do anything. Instead, she drifted to her past, to all the ways she’d have done things different. She thought, maybe, if she could do it all over again, she’d have invited Mason to stay the night when he’d brought her that dog. Maybe things would have worked out if she hadn’t been so determined to keep him at a distance.

 

Now, Arthur sat across from her, demanding her attention. “I’m glad you’re here.”

 

“Why are you so screwed up?”

 

He frowned, setting a whiskey bottle down. The man drank too much. Likely a result of the stress he was always under, the demand on him to be perfect, but Nora couldn’t help but see him as just another drunk. “Excuse me?”

 

“You know I don’t want you, but you refuse to accept it. I mean, yes, Gage tried to rape me, but at least he didn’t think I’d ever want him. He just wanted to use me for his own ends and thought sex would help. But you? You, I don’t get. There are hundreds of women who would love to marry you, who would throw themselves at your feet to carry on the Maxson line. Why go through all this trouble for someone who despises you?”

 

He laughed. “That mouth of yours, for one. Things in my life have come easy. I’ve gotten them because of my name, because of my parents. You are something no one could give me. You, I had to win.”

 

“You didn’t win me. You were given me, just like everything else in your life.”

 

He shook his head. “No. I was given a chance with you. I’ll win you on my own. When I do, when you’re really mine, you’ll understand. I’ll have finally gotten something on my own, finally won something special.”

 

Nora shook her head, sitting back. “You are broken, you know that?”

 

“Perhaps, but are you any less broken? You’ve torn apart the Commonwealth for a fantasy you knew you were never getting back. For the possibility to get back one person, you’ve killed hundreds? Thousands? You’ve slaughtered some groups, empowered others. What do you think gave you that right? Why was it okay for you to dictate the course for thousands of people in the Commonwealth? You did it because you could. Am I doing anything different by changing the course of a single woman, simply because I can?” He pushed the bottle of whiskey across the table to Nora. “And for all your running, all your fighting against this, you’ve got nothing to show for it. Some fling with a raider who won’t remember you in a few days and a park of gangs who will tear each other apart at the first sign of trouble, and you’re still right here, where I knew you’d always end up. So, I’ve got to ask, was it worth it?”

 

Nora held the whiskey bottle, thinking back. After everything, the close calls and the fights and the heartache, was it worth it? Would she have done it all again? Would she have answered that fucking call on the radio if she’d known where it would lead?

 

She smiled, thought about Mason as he snored that morning, face paint smeared, then took a gulp from the whiskey. “Yeah, it was worth it.”

 

#

 

Mason hauled himself off the Vertibird, thankful to grab the railing of the Prydwen. If he never found himself on another fucking airship he’d be happy. Nisha followed his suit, holding the edge, but William didn’t seem to mind.

 

“Not a fan of heights?” William asked, a cocky smile across his lips.

 

“Not really, no,” Mason admitted.

 

William slapped him on the shoulder. “Well, why don’t we go shoot some Brotherhood? Nothing takes your mind off things like some blood.”

 

And wasn’t that an idea Mason could get behind? Their group wasn’t large, only the three gang leaders and each brought two additional members, giving them nine in total, but their nine best could outdo any soldier. Besides, the goal was simple. They didn’t need to clear the fucking ship, they just needed to get to Nora, and if he’d read Maxson right, Nora would be in his quarters.

 

That was a short walk. From there, holding the position would be a cinch. The only way for the men in the belly of the ship to supply back-up would be the ladder, which was a simple place to hold.

 

Whoever built the ship had no mind for strategy.

 

Mason might be an animal, but he was an animal who understood choke points.

 

#

 

Shots rang out, causing Arthur to straighten. Worry played havoc with his features, but Nora only smiled.

 

“Worried, Arthur?”

 

His gaze shot to the door, then back to her. “Should I be?”

 

“Sounds like someone is storming your castle, King. That would make anyone nervous.”

 

“You think it’s your friends?”

 

She laughed at the thought. No, raiders weren’t known for saving fallen comrades. Nora held no illusions that she’d be missed, that anyone would raise a finger. Hell, Mason was likely Overboss, the others falling into line. And really, as long as he was safe, she was okay with that. She wasn’t even angry about it. “Raiders? No, they aren’t the sort for rescue missions. But, I think anyone who comes after you is a friend of mine.”

 

“Could be Institute or Railroad survivors. They might want you dead as much as me.”

 

Nora laughed and took another drink of the whiskey still between them. “Could be, but you know what? I think maybe seeing you die would be worth it to me. You see, you’re a hell of a lot more invested in your life than I am in mine, especially now. Back someone into a corner, take everything away from them, and see what happens. Anything goes feral if you push them enough.”

 

Arthur stood and turned over the table between them.

 

Nora didn’t move, crossing her feet at the ankles, throwing one arm over the back of the chair and taking another drink. If he wanted to rage and scream, let him. Let him having one more hissy fit, let him take out his impotent anger on anything he wanted to.

 

He yanked her out of the chair, placing an arm around her chest and pressing the muzzle of a pistol to her temple.

 

“Look at the great Elder Arthur Maxson, reduced to using a woman as a shield.”

 

“Shut up, Nora!”

 

The shooting outside calmed, then stopped. After another minute, the door opened.

 

#

 

If Mason thought Arthur might live through this, the sight of him pressing a gun to Nora’s head nixed that idea.

 

“Not another step,” Arthur said, tightening his grip.

 

“Mason?” Surprise soaked her voice.

 

Fuck, that hurt. She hadn’t thought for a moment that he’d come, had she? Not that he’d given her much reason to think that.

 

“Why does everyone forget about me?” William walked into the room.

 

“Because you’re to be seen, not heard. Pretty things are decorative only,” Nisha offered, twirling that blade. “Ah, Overboss, you’re busy I see.”

 

“I will kill her,” Arthur threatened.

 

“And then I’ll skin you, alive. I’ve had a lot of practice, boy.” Nisha balanced her blade on a finger, then tossed it up and snatched the hilt. “So maybe you want to not threaten our Overboss?”

 

Nora hadn’t paid any attention to William or Nisha, her eyes still pinned to Mason, like he was some ghost she couldn’t fucking believe was there.

 

“Hey, she-wolf,” he said, voice soft. “You left so fast, I didn’t get a goodbye.”

 

“Don’t talk to her!” Red flushed in Arthur’s cheeks. Kid probably hated not being taken seriously. Still, no one listened to the Elder. “We both get out of here or neither of us do.”

 

Mason laughed. “Fuck, kid, you really don’t get it, do you? This is exactly why you never had a shot, you never really saw her for what she is. That girl you’re hanging on to isn’t trophy wife material. You’ve got a wild animal there.”

 

Nora’s eyes cleared, as if that’s what she needed to get back in the game. Finally. “You’re not going to kill me, Arthur.”

 

“You sure?”

 

“Yeah. You’re a coward. You aren’t ready to die. You still want to negotiate out of this alive, and you know if you kill me, there’s no chance of you living.”

 

“So, what are you offering?”

 

“Your life, and you better thank what God’s you want to for that much. You put down your gun, you can take your men and leave. No one else has to die today.”

 

Arthur’s hand tightened, but then released her. He didn’t drop his gun, but he held it up.

 

Nora crossed the room in a few steps and threw her arms around Mason.

 

“Fuck, sweetheart, I missed you.” He kissed her, pulling her harder against him.  He broke the kiss in time to see rage cross Arthur’s face.

 

Arthur lowered the gun and shot.


	24. Chapter 24

Nora clutched Mason as he turned. Something struck them, knocking them backward. They hit the doorway then tumbled to the ground.

 

Another shot fired in the room, but Nora ignored it, her attention caught on the blood from Mason’s arm.

 

Arthur had fired, and Mason had taken the shot for her.

 

“Are you okay?” Nora knew her voice was all panic, and even if she could see the wound wouldn’t kill him, she’d come too close to losing him already.

 

“Please, someone tell me the fucker is dead?”

 

“Probably wishes he was,” William said. “But he’s still breathing.”

 

Nora shoved off Mason, taking his rifle with her. Arthur sat on the floor, a wound in his thigh. Nisha had kicked his gun away, and it seemed William had taken the shot.

 

“You could have just left, Arthur. You could have put your gun down and walked away from this all, gone back to DC, done whatever you wanted with that title of yours.”

 

“I am a Maxson.”

 

“You are a child, but don’t think that’ll buy you any leeway. Don’t forget, I let my own child burn with the Institute when he wouldn’t see reason.”

 

“You won’t kill me. You don’t have it in you.”

 

Mason’s voice came from behind Nora. “You know why I call her she-wolf? Because I once saw a female wolf who got tired of an alpha that kept fucking up. I watched her take his throat, and he had the same exact look on his face you do. Well, kid, I think you fucked up one too many times.”

 

Nora lifted the gun and pulled the trigger.

 

#

 

With Maxson dead, the rest of the Brotherhood surrendered with ease. Mason would have been happy to slaughter the bunch, but Nora insisted they be set free.

 

Well, somewhat free. The groups of minutemen escorting them to the Commonwealth boundary meant they wouldn’t be causing trouble.

 

“So how’d you talk Preston into helping?” Nora asked.

 

“It wasn’t that hard, Blue. His men caught the group burning settlements, and it didn’t take much prompting before they admitted they’d been working for someone other than you. Preston isn’t happy with you, but he removed the whole ‘shoot on sight’ thing.” Piper sat on a crate at the airport beside Nora. She’d shown up as soon as they landed. It told Mason not to plan on having any secrets with the nosey reporter around.

 

“Well, I guess that’s something.”

 

“Hey, it’s hard to be too mad at you when you’re giving the Brotherhood the boot. Preston holds grudges, but that sort of gift’ll charm anyone.” Piper nodded at the Prydwen. “What’s your plan for that?”

 

Nora looked at William, who had been eyeing the reported more than polite company would warrant. Guess it was good raiders weren’t known for being polite. “There are only five parks. You’re the only one who didn’t throw up over the side of the Prydwen. What do you think about taking it to even things out? I’ll give Nisha kiddie kingdom and you take that. Before you agree, know that the vertibirds will be shared between the gangs, and know that there is a lot of upkeep to that thing.”

 

William’s gaze lifted, and he grinned. “Oh, yeah, I think that’ll work.” He then met Piper’s gaze. “You fancy a visit?”

 

Hell, Mason had seen seasoned whores fall for William’s charm when he turned it on, but Piper didn’t even melt. “Trust me, if I visit, it means you’ve got secrets that won’t be secrets for long.”

 

“You want to interrogate me? I’m game.”

 

Piper huffed, but Mason wasn’t stupid. The blush on her cheeks said she’d go visit the raider just as soon as want overrode suspicion. 

 

Nora took a deep breath, like she hadn’t really breathed since all this shit had started, like she’d been running and finally got a break. “Alright then. So, gangs are at peace and happy, Brotherhood is gone, I’m not being married off to an asshole, and I’m not longer on the shoot on sight list. What do we do now?”

 

Mason yanked Nora over, claiming her mouth in a kiss. “Oh, I’ve got an idea of what we do now, she-wolf.”

 

#

 

Mason perched above Nora, body rigid, and she laughed. “You don’t wear worry well, you know that?”

 

“Fuck, Nora, I want this to be right. Last time I fucked it up, so this time it has to be right.”

 

She could hear him starting to dissolve into another apology, so she leaned up and nipped his bottom lip. “Shut up about that, will you? I’m ready.”

 

He slid a hand beneath her neck, dipping down to kiss her. She hadn’t been kidding; she was ready. He’d spent the last hour making sure, leaving her damn near useless to do anything but beg him to take her already.

 

Mason pushed into her, and while it burned as she grew accustomed, the pain from last time was absent. “You okay?”

 

She nodded and wrapped one leg around his hip. “I’m fine. Come on, get with it.”

 

He chuckled against her lips. “You got any idea how much I love you?”

 

“You mean that?” Did she have to sound so damned desperate? Like she wanted that more than anything? She should have gone for disinterest, like she couldn’t care less about it. Not that he’d believe her.

 

“Yeah, I mean it. I should have fucking told you sooner, huh? Some alpha I am, I about fell at your feet that first night, just like that mutt I gave you.” He slid out then pushed back in, just as slow as he pleased no matter how Nora tried to prompt him. “I ain’t never letting you go, you know that, right?”

 

Nora wrapped her arms around the back of his neck, arching into his thrusts. She dug her nails into his back, reveling in the way it drew a moan from him. He took anything she gave. She couldn’t imagine spending another day without this, without him beside her. Hell, she wasn’t sure how she’d made it through all the time after waking up without him. It was like someone handing you water when you’re dehydrated, and realizing how damned thirsty you had been.

 

She bit his bottom lip. “That’s fine with me, because I’m not letting you get away, either. Someone once told me no she-wolf should sleep without an alpha in her bed.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for everyone who hung in until the end! :)


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